


We Cannot Stop this Sickness Taking Over [It Takes Control and Drags Us into Nowhere]

by devious-sex-monster (darkotter)



Category: Free!
Genre: AU - A/B/O, Alpha!Gou, Alpha!Sousuke, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Post Apocalyptic, Anal Sex, Beta!Kisumi, Beta!Rei, Beta!Rin, Blood and Torture, Brothels, Cannibalism, Changing in A/B/O dynamics, Character Death, Dark!Makoto, Frotting, Graphic description of gang rape, Heat Cycles, Knotting, M/M, Naive!Sousuke, Omega!Haru, Panic Attacks, Post-Apocalypse, Prostitution, Reference to Flaying, Switching of POV, Torture, Various ways of Torture, Whore!Kisumi, alpha!makoto, cannibals, flaying
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-27
Updated: 2017-02-21
Packaged: 2018-04-01 13:32:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 11
Words: 49,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4021729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkotter/pseuds/devious-sex-monster
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rin's life has been perfect, growing up in the small oasis town of Samezuka; the only glimpses of the land beyond was what he could see from his rooftop and the horror stories of savages, raiders, cannibals. Until the unthinkable happens: a desert storm reaches their safe haven, swallowing it whole. Only with the help of two scavengers does Rin, his sister, and his best friend, survive the initial aftermath. But can they adjust to the harsh reality of their lives, all the while staying safe from the dangers of their new world?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. They Say the World is Ending

**Author's Note:**

> Wanted to do Alpha/Beta/Omega 'verse fic. It's all [Maybeillride](http://archiveofourown.org/users/maybeillride)'s fault, her fic Boundary Waters, is lovely. It's also the inspiration for how the dynamics came to be within this world. This is also the first ABO fic I have ever written, so please be gentle with me.
> 
> I wanted post-apocalyptic...I didn't know what type...
> 
> And then I saw Mad Max: Fury Road and my entire world changed and I just knew what type of post-apocalyptic world I wanted. (If you haven't seen that movie yet, go see it. Right this second. You can read my fanfiction afterwards. You won't be sorry.) 
> 
> Title inspired by lyrics from Starset's My Demons.  
> 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Title: Lyrics from Ghost Town's Party in the Graveyard

Rin knew what they said. Everyone knew what they said. Common knowledge throughout their community really. The desert was slowly eating away at their utopian oasis. Soon (how soon, no one really seemed to know) their oasis, their fields of rice and wheat, their fruit orchards, their beautiful parks filled with flowers and ponds and koi would disappear. The community scientists wondered how exactly they had lasted this long.

No one much paid attention to them and the redheaded beta was no different.

How could their oasis, the only green for miles upon miles, surrounded by walls of trees, succumb to the power of the desert storms? Simply impossible. They were safe, they would always be safe, protected, living happily.

From the rooftop of the Matsuoka household, it was possible to  _just_  see over the protective wall of thick and tall trees to the desert stretching as far as the eye could see. Rin loved going up there (when his mother wasn't home, of course) in the evening and watch the sea of rolling sand dunes. Sometimes a storm would rumble by, many miles away. He'd pretend he could hear the growling of the thunder that followed the flashes of lightning. He'd wonder what it was like, in those storms with the clouds and the winds. But he was never quite adventurous enough to pick his way through the forest to see for himself. His mother would probably have a heart attack, especially after what had happened to his father.

"You think they're right?" Gou pondered one night, her head resting on Rin's shoulder. Sousuke sat on her other side as the three gazed out over the trees, watching the massive wall of storm in the distance.

"Eh?" Rin asked, tearing his gaze away from the flash of lightning to look at his little sister.

"The storms and the desert," she said, hooking her arm with his. He saw her do the same with Sousuke's arm. "Do you think the desert  _is_  eating away, and it'll get through the trees and everything we have will be lost?"

"Nah," Rin replied, glancing over his sister's red head over at his best friend. "How could that ever happen?"

"What do  _you_  think, Sou?" Gou asked and looked at the alpha beside her. She nudged his side playfully and he scowled. Rin knew it wasn't a real scowl, just a teasing one towards his not-really-sister.

"I agree with Rin. How could that reach us? Especially through the trees," he replied and Rin grinned, sharp teeth illuminated by the moonlight. All three of them looked back at the horizon again. It always sent shivers down his spine, seeing the raw power the desolate landscape held. But he had no need to worry. They were fine.

He rested his cheek against his sister's deep red hair. "Don't worry, Gou," he said. "Nothing would ever happen to our home."

A chill shook him and he hoped that Gou didn't notice, because despite his words, he could've sworn he had been able to hear the low rumble of thunder, and that had never happened before.

"Your mom is gonna be pissed if she finds us up here," Sousuke hummed and glanced at his friends slash siblings.

"You're right. She'll probably be getting home soon," Rin replied and nudged his sister. "Come on." She nodded her red head and together they headed down into the house.

As he fell asleep that night, stretched out on his mattress comfortably, he thought he heard the thunder again and the tell-tale signs of wind against the side of the house. Although it made him worry, because maybe just maybe those scientists were correct, he couldn't seem to be worked up over this oddness and drifted off like normal.

 

The town was silent, asleep, when the light of the moon was obscured by impenetrable clouds and the trees groaned against the strength of the wind. They had been too peaceful for much too long, and it seems Nature thought it was time for the little town of Samezuka to pay its dues for such luck

 

The first thing Rin was conscious of was the pain. The second thing he was conscious of was that he  _could not breathe_. His brain filled with panic as he realized this, struggling against the force pressing into him on all sides and he tried to gasp, tried to get oxygen to his deprived body. All that achieved was his mouth filling with dry coarse grit. He choked and coughed, fighting against the prison that enclosed him.

It was sand, he realized, and it was everywhere. In his mouth, his eyes, his nose and ears and he needed to  _breathe_. He fought, pushing and scrambling, following his weak sense of up and down, hoping against hope that it was right. That he was fighting towards the surface.

Rin was lucky; he really, really was. His head broke the surface of sand and he spat, retching the sand from his mouth, lungs and stomach. Once his air ways were clear enough to breathe, he took shuddering gasps. It hurt. Everything hurt. His lungs hurt, his throat hurt, and his head. Head spinning due to the rush of oxygen, he dragged his hands up to rub his eyes enough to see.

Rin rolled himself onto his back, unable to think of sitting or standing right now, and forced his eyes open. The sun beat down on him harsh and unforgiving, not a cloud in sight. He turned his head to one side and then to the other as he wheezed air into his lungs.

This couldn't be real, this simply  _could not have happened_. Sand surrounded Rin.

To his right, he could see the remnants of their protection, the wall of age-old trees. They had been reduced to splintered sticks, protruding from the hills of sand. Stripped of all bark and gleaming in the bright sun, they looked like skeletons clawing their way from the earth.

To his left, what was left behind of his town stretched as far as he could see. Many structures, houses and buildings and cars, weren't completely covered but all were beaten to the ground. They had collapsed. Laid in ruins. Simply ripped to shreds from the force of wind and sand and fire.

So he must be laying in what had been his house. When he realized this, a wave of panic washed over him and he staggered to his feet. "Gou! Sousuke!" he cried, his voice scratchy and unrecognizable. "Mother!" He turned in quick circles, ignoring how his head spun with dizziness.  _He_  had survived! They had to be alive, they needed to still be alive! They were all he had!

"Gou!" he yelled again as he staggered through the debris of what must have been his house. His skin burned from the sun and the sand and he couldn't quite feel his feet but he had to find his family. He couldn't be alone, he just  _couldn't be alone_. " _Sousuke_! Do you hear me?"

It was then that he heard the rev of an engine, fast approaching. The words he had been about to yell died in his throat as he looked around. Everything was so  _bright_  he could barely see, and there was no way he could focus his eyes, not now. But he didn't need to. Not when the vehicle was creating a spray of sand in its wake.

He had heard of scavengers, of sand-dwellers. Those who weren't lucky enough to live within the safety of a town, green and protected. They were always made out to be savages. Raiders. Rapists. Cannibals. Ruthless creatures driven mad by hours in the sun and dehydration.

Rin's first thought was that he was incredibly glad he was not an omega. The second was that he  _needed to hide right now_  and just pray that they wouldn't find him. He was attractive (well, maybe not right now, not covered in sand-blisters), able-bodied, probably sellable. Oh the stories he had heard. He shuddered and staggered as he was overcome with lightheadedness.

The roots and trunk of the magnificent cherry tree that had once grown in their yard lay on its side some yards away. It looked like there might be a small dip or wallow underneath the trunk where sand hadn't filled in completely and he scrambled forward. Halfway there he collapsed onto his knees but continued to the space that hopefully would offer his salvation. The engine of the vehicle was even closer; it roared unnaturally loud. Nothing like the cars they had had in Samezuka, the quiet things that could barely be heard.

As he reached the tree he thanked whatever god was listening. There was a small space underneath the tree, just big enough for him to wriggle in, dig himself into the sand, hide as best he could.

Rin forced his way under it, wincing as more sand dragged against his skin and forced its way into his eyes. Only when he was sure he was completely hidden did he still, peering out of the small space.

The vehicle had finally reached the edge of the tree line. It was sand-beaten and looked nothing like any car Rin had ever seen. It roared easily across the soft sand and the debris of trees. Large metal spikes extended from the hubcaps of the truck and what looked to be a plow was connected to the front of it.

It growled to a stop not far from Rin's hiding place and he covered his mouth with a hand. His heart pounded in his chest, terrified, as the engine cut off. Silence echoed in the air and rang loud in his ears until the clatter of the heavy metal doors of the truck opened. Two people stepped out. For a long minute, they simply stood there, silent and unmoving except for the turn of their heads.

Rin was shaking so hard, his heart beating so fast, that he didn't know how the two savages couldn't hear him. He breathed low and fast, trying to stay as quiet as he could as he watched. He sent up thanks when they moved so the silence no longer hung in the air and he let out a slow breathe. He tried to focus on them, taking in their appearances.

One was tall and broad, like Sousuke. The other smaller, slimmer, probably a little shorter than Rin. Both were wearing well-weathered clothes. They pulled off the protective cloth around their heads and the redhead could only gape.

They…didn't look like savages. They didn't look like the monstrous sand-dwellers he had been told about since he was a child. They looked…like him. Like townsfolk. Covered in dirt and well-worn, but they didn't look crazy. They had the brightest eyes he had ever seen. Bright green and ocean (well, he assumed that's what color the ocean had been) blue. They seemed oddly familiar, the colors did. Like something from a dream. But he shook his head to get rid of these irrelevant thoughts.

"Wow," the taller said, looking around as he scratched the back of his head. "The storm decimated it." His voice was deep, gentle. And even from where he was hidden, Rin could hear within it the hard lilt of an alpha. He wasn't surprised, he was built like an alpha. He shrank back into his hiding place further.

"Mm," his companion replied as he walked away from their truck, eyes on the ground. He looked like he was searching for something. Or maybe he was searching for anything he could find.

"We should check the cars," the taller said as he tugged his jacket open.

"Then check the cars," the blue eyed one replied, not taking his eyes off the ground. He had made it down the street (well, what had been the street) and was picking his way through the remains of a house. If Rin was gauging space correctly, the man was standing where Aiichiro's house had stood just yesterday.

The larger one walked through the sand, picking his way from car to car. He brushed them off, opening their engines and looking into their cabs. At one point he jogged back to their truck to grab something he used to rip parts out of the engine.

Meanwhile, the blue eyed one had paused in his wanderings. He was crouched down into the sand.

"Haru, what'd you find?" the green eyed one called to the other.

The other, Haru, brushed his hands off. "This one's dead," he said as he stood straight. The taller one walked over to his partner, a large car part in his oil-covered hands.

"What a pity," he murmured. "He was pretty, too."

"Omega," Haru said.

Rin's blood ran cold. It must've been Ai. It had to be. He was the only omega in the Nitori household, the only omega on their street. He shut his eyes as tears forced their way to the surface. If he cried, he would more than likely give away his position. Cry later, survive now. He bit down on his chapped lips until his teeth broke the skin, but it stopped him from letting out any sound.

The taller clicked his tongue then smiled at his partner. "I'm sure no one's left," he said, heading back to their truck. Right through the remnants of the Matsuoka household. Mere yards from Rin's hiding place. The redheaded beta covered his mouth again, trying not to breathe.

"Of course not, Mako," Haru hummed and continued to pick through the rubble. He had started to collect things in the bags hanging from his shoulders but Rin was too far away to see what objects he had.

The one called Mako was halfway through his house when he stopped. A frown graced those handsome features. "Hey, Haru," he called. He tossed the engine part in the sand beside him and nudged a section of walling that had somehow stayed intact. "Come here."

Rin could see, even from where he hid, that Haru was scowling as he headed back to the alpha.

"What?" he asked, obviously annoyed that he had been interrupted in his scavenging. It seemed that he would have to set things down though, the bags he carried bulged and pulled down on his shoulders.

"I think this one's alive," Mako said and grabbed the piece of wall.

"What?" Haru asked, less annoyed and now more curious.

"I think this one's still breathing," the alpha repeated. "Help."

The one called Haru dumped his bags in the sand near the engine part and gripped the other side of the walling. Rin heard them puff as they dragged it up. It fell to the sand on the other side and the redhead craned his head in his little hole, trying to see what or who they were looking at.

His eyes widened as he saw a shock of black hair.

"Ooh," the green eyed one said. "That looks painful. Shoulder is totally wrecked."

Haru knelt next to where Sousuke lay and Rin could no longer see him, not over the mounds of sand. "He's still breathing," he hummed. The redhead stiffened. His best friend! His brother! What were they going to do to him? Would they finish him off, take him,  _eat him?!_

Without thinking about the consequences of his very stupid actions, Rin scrambled as fast as he could out of his hiding place and to his feet. He nearly collapsed but braced himself on the tree trunk. He could now see Sousuke, half buried in the sand. And Haru, kneeling beside him.

"D-don't touch him!" he called out. He wished he had sounded impressive, strong, intimidating. But instead his voice came out shaking, raspy, weak. Mako jumped in start and looked around but Haru simply flicked his gaze up to him. "I said d-don't touch him!" Rin repeated and stumbled away from the tree and towards his best friend.

"Multiple survivors, impressive," Haru murmured to his partner. He turned his attention back to Sousuke, apparently losing interest in the redhead. He pressed two fingers against Sousuke's neck and stayed like that for a long moment before his hands flitted to Sousuke's left shoulder.

Rin grabbed a large stick imbedded in the sand and dragged it out, holding it like a sword. "Back away from him! I'll fight you."

Mako raised his hands in a passive gesture, keeping eye contact with Rin. "We're not going to hurt him," he said, tone gentle. "It isn't our intention."

"Maybe put him out of his misery though," the blue eyed one grunted as he peered close at Sousuke's shoulder. His slender fingers pushed against the flesh there and Rin could see blood and muscle and the sand was crimson and he covered his mouth, feeling a little sick. Haru's fingers were tipped in Sousuke's blood. The blue eyed one looked up at Rin.

"Haru!" Mako said, "don't say that. He is obviously important to this man."

"I'm not saying we'd to that," Haru muttered.

"Yes, he is!" Rin stuttered.

Haru stood and leaned close to his partner. "Beta," he murmured. "Strange beta…" Mako simply nodded to him and looked back at Rin and he was smiling. The smile was gentle, kind, unlike any smile Rin had ever seen before and he immediately felt his body relaxing without his consent. And how had that small blue eyed one, Haru, just  _know_  that he was a beta? Omegas were only visible as such during their heats, alphas only as such when they were rutting. But betas were often unrecognizable, simply  _there_ , the same as an omega free of their heat.

"We can help you," Mako said and the lilt within his voice strengthened. "Relax. Don't be afraid."

Rin shuddered at the strength of the alpha's words. Logically he knew he shouldn't be bending to this man's will. Logically he knew that an alpha's speak wasn't as strong towards a beta and he should be able to  _fight it_ , but he felt his body relaxing at the command. The fear drained from him and he slumped into the sand.

The taller one slowly walked to him with his hands still outstretched.

"That was cheating," Haru grumbled, kneeling back down next to the unconscious Sousuke.

"I didn't use it on you," Mako called back and stood in front of Rin. The redhead stared up at the alpha, eyes wide. He was still terrified and confused and grief-stricken, but he couldn't move, too exhausted and weak. He took in the alpha's appearance now that he was only a foot or so away. His hair was a light brown, ragged as it fell into his eyes. Those green eyes were even greener than he initially thought. The tall man crouched before him so they were eyelevel with each other.

"What's your name?" he asked gently. He no longer was using the Voice.

Rin swallowed; the feeling caused him a great deal of pain to his raw throat. "Rin," he croaked.

"Hello Rin, I'm Makoto," the brunet replied. "What's your friend's name over there?" He motioned over his shoulder. The smaller one was doing  _something_  to Sousuke and Rin tensed.

"That's Sousuke. What is he doing to him?" he asked and strained to see over Makoto's large shoulders.

"Calm down," Makoto said. "Haru is just checking to see how he's fairing. You're very resilient, you and your friend. It's rare that people survive these things."

"He'll survive," Haru said. He stood back up and came back into Rin's view. His hands were bloody. "But his shoulder needs to be cleaned or else it'll have to be cut off."

Rin let out a low whimper at the thought of his best friend being crippled. What had happened to his arm? What was wrong with him? Why would it need to be cut off?

His hair fell into his eyes and then snapped his attention back onto the alpha in front of him.

"Have you seen my sister?! She has red hair like me! I need to find her!" he gasped out and surprised himself by grabbing onto Makoto's arm. The alpha was stable, his forearms all hard muscle under his jacket. He couldn't lose her, he had told her everything was going to be okay. He was the big brother, he was supposed to protect her. She  _had_ to be okay. If she hadn't survived…it would be his fault and he would never be able to forgive himself.

"We can look, although the chances are low," Makoto said, his smile not leaving his face. He gripped Rin's forearms in return before pulling from his grasp. "Haru, he says he has a sister. You think you can find her?"

Rin watched as the smaller checked on Sousuke one last time before coming over to the two. He looked at the redhead piercingly. The redhead made eye contact with him and couldn't look away.

"What is she?" Haru asked.

"W-what?" Rin asked.

Haru huffed, obviously annoyed.

"He means is she a beta? An omega?" Makoto interjected and Haru nodded. He still hadn't pulled his eyes from him and it made Rin's skin crawl. He seemed to be having trouble breathing clearly with those eyes on him. What  _was_  this man?

"O-oh," Rin said. "No. Neither. My sister's an alpha."

This seemed to please Haru. He leaned close and grasped both sides of Rin's face. The beta froze, not knowing what was going on and too scared to ask. The blue eyed man pulled Rin's face up, exposing his neck. Rin was shaking now. He had never had someone this close, not like this, it wasn't supposed to be like this. But all Haru did was nose against his glands, inhaling deeply before releasing him. He stood up. Rin could feel smears of Sousuke's blood the other had left on his face and shuddered, drawing away from the blue eyed man.

"Alpha, really? I've only met two other female alphas. They are a force to be reckoned with," Makoto said as he watched his partner. "Although that will make it easier for him to find her."

Rin simply nodded. His body felt numb from Haru's handling. He knew that he wasn't an alpha, he could smell that much. But that was all he had gotten. He didn't know what was going on, he didn't know why Gou being an alpha would make things easier, but he was glad for it. He watched the blue eyed one slowly drift away from them. He looked like he was sleep walking, eyes mostly closed and his steps slow and dazed. He was breathing deep, in-out, in-out. Was he trying to smell her?

And then he had stopped, suddenly, and bounced gently on the sand he stood. "There is a space here," he murmured, looking over his shoulder at the two men. "It's hollow. She's here."

Rin scrambled towards him. Makoto followed close behind, a hand on his back in gentle support. "Where? Where's my sister?"

Haru jumped gently again, showing them how where he was standing gave way just slightly. There was obviously a space there and Rin's eyes widened. That was where the fruit cellar was. It had to be. Maybe she was still alive, maybe she was still safe. He jolted away from the alpha holding him up and started digging furiously at the sand. Haru stood back to watch, eyes on the beta as he dug feverishly. Makoto stepped forward, taking pity on the redhead, and started to help him.

They revealed the door to the fruit cellar, sagging under the weight that had been covering it. Rin tried to pull it open but the sand weighed it down and the hinges were stuck. He was too weak and in shock to do anything. Haru grabbed his arm and tugged him out of the way so that Makoto could step forward and the alpha gave the door a mighty pull. It yanked open with a loud clatter, sending sand into the air.

"Gou? Gou?" Rin yelled, stumbling away from the two sand-dwellers and down the steps. It was cool in the cellar, dim.

"Rin!"

Rin's eyes filled with tears as he heard his sisters voice. He blundered forward blinding and grabbed onto the girl. Her forehead knocked against his chin but neither of them cared, they just pressed together desperately. "You're alive!"

"I thought you were dead," she said at the same time, burying her face into his shoulder, shaking as she cried.

"We're okay. W-we survived. A-and Sousuke too, although he's hurt," Rin said, pulling back to look at his sister's face. He took ahold of her cheeks and looked at her carefully. She seemed physically okay in the dim light. Her eyes were too wide and she was too pale, but that was to be expected. It seemed like she had escaped the storm, her skin was smooth and unhurt. "C-come on."

He took her hand and led her from the fruit cellar. She froze at the sight of Haru and Makoto. Haru's hands still had blood on them and Makoto's height was imposing.

"It's okay. They helped me," Rin said although he could see she didn't really believe him. And Makoto's little alpha lilt wouldn't really work too well on another alpha, and he was sure Makoto knew that. Instead, he bowed his head to the girl in respect and submission.

"No harm intended," he said smiling. "Just helping."

Gou stared at him then glanced at her brother. He squeezed her hand in assurance.

"Okay," she said and made eye contact with the brunet alpha. "Okay."

"Good," Makoto said and dusted his hands off. "Well, you can help us collect. We haven't been out long, sure there's still a good amount of stuff here. Then we can leave, we'll help you get you on your feet and –"

"We need to leave," Haru snapped, cutting off Makoto's words. All three turned to look at him. Rin and Gou stared, a little scared and on edge but Makoto focused all his attention on him.

"What is it?"

Haru turned and motioned to the distance. "Raiding party," he said. "We need to leave now." Rin looked towards where the blue eyed man was staring at. He could just see the trails of sand, a sign of vehicles making their way towards them. Fast. And more than one.

"Get into the truck," Makoto said sharply. "Grab those—" he motioned to the items that he and Haru had been collecting "—we'll get your friend."

The siblings grabbed the bags (they were much heavier than Rin had expected from how the two sand-dwellers had carried them) and engine part before stumbling to the truck. Their feet caught in the sand and Gou nearly fell but Rin steadied her and they pushed the things into the truck before practically falling inside. With Haru's help, Makoto lifted Sousuke onto his shoulder, much easier than lifting someone Sousuke's size should have been. They both headed to the car. Haru slid into the driver's seat as Makoto helped Gou and Rin put Sousuke between them.

The truck roared into life even before Makoto had jumped into the passenger seat and Haru was urging it forward before the door had shut completely. They started moving slowly, crawling over the remains of the Matsuoka house. And then faster, and faster. Rin watched with wide eyes as Haru shifted gears, urging the truck to higher speeds. Blue eyes met red ones in the mirror momentarily and then looked past him on the raiding party. Rin reached across Sousuke and grabbed Gou's hand.

"We should be fine," Makoto said, turned to face them. "Your town is worth much more to a raiding party than us. We're rarely of much interest."

"What if there were other survivors?" Gou asked as she held her brother's hand tightly. Her other hand was on Sousuke's shoulder. Just to make sure he was alive, Rin figured, because he was doing the exact same thing. He hoped that his best friend would wake up soon.

The brunet's expression didn't change. "If they're alive and the raiding party finds them, they'll probably be taken. More than likely sold in the slave markets. If they put up a struggle, or are not up to the raider's standards, or have something wrong with them, they'll be killed."

Rin gripped Gou's hand and gritted his teeth. People he had grown up with, those he had played with, gone to classes and worked with…gone. His house with Gou and Sou and their mother. All gone.

"But more than likely no one else survived. It's incredibly rare for people to make it through a storm that big. You were probably protected by the trees," Makoto continued on. "The raiding party will take what they want and go back to their citadel. Just be glad that you're alive and that we found you first."

Rin swallowed hard and closed his eyes. Gou stroked the top of his hand with her thumb. "That omega you found, who w-was dead…did he have…did he have silver hair?" he forced out. He  _needed_  to know. He just needed to.

"Yes," Haru answered, glancing at them over his shoulder. "Silver hair. Beauty mark under his eye. Pretty."

The redhead couldn't stop them now, the tears started to well up in his eyes. They spilled over his cheeks. "Ai's dead," he whispered and looked over at his sister. She met his gaze with her own, and he could tell that they shimmered with tears.

"If…if he's dead, then Sei and Momo are probably g-g-gone too," she breathed out. Her tears slowly started running down her cheeks.

"Everyone is gone," Rin groaned and hid his face in Sousuke's uninjured shoulder. He couldn't stop himself from crying. His whole world was destroyed. His beautiful town. His mother. His friends and classmates. Everything he had ever known. Broken, destroyed, swallowed by the desert like they said would happen. He sobbed loudly, the only other noise the growl of the truck engine, into Sousuke's shoulder.

"W-we're together, Rin," Gou whispered after some time. "We'll get through this. We're together."

The beta didn't move, but nodded into his best friend's tear-dampened shoulder and squeezed her hand. Yes. They were together. He had to trust her and take care of her. They would take care of each other, and would take care of Sousuke together until he was no longer injured.

They  _would_  get through this, just like she said. They were together, after all.


	2. What Did You Live For?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Title: Lyrics from Ghost Town's Party at the Graveyard.
> 
> Haru has issues. Everyone has issues. EVERYONE WILL GET TO BE SPOTLIGHTED FOR THEIR ISSUES. I rewrote this chapter like five times. Okay, like three. It was much shorter during the first draft, I think it gained like 2k words? But I am now much happier with it. So. (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧

            Rin didn’t remember falling asleep until he was woken up by a yell. He sat bold upright, hitting his head hard on the truck ceiling as he did so before looking around. They were still in the truck, and the truck was still flying across the desert sands. The sun still beat down on them. Who knew what time it was or if it mattered. If it was still the same day or if it was the next, if he had spent a week sleeping, Rin didn’t know. But he did know one thing.

            Sousuke had woken up and he had woken up in a panic.

            “What t-the hell is g-g-going on?” Sousuke yelled, struggling between the two siblings. “Where am I?”

            Rin felt the car swerve and he was sure Sousuke’s yell had startled Haru.

            “Calm him down,” the blue eyed man snapped from the front. “Too loud.”

            “Who the hell are you guys?” Sousuke stared forward up at Haru and Makoto. “Oh god my shoulder.”

            “Sousuke, Sousuke, it’s okay,” Gou said and grabbed his injured arm. She, like Rin, obviously didn’t want him hurting himself even more than he already had. And thrashing definitely was a good way of furthering the injury. Rin took hold of his other arm and he looked at both of them.

            “R-Rin? Gou?” he choked out. His skin was sun-blistered just like Rin’s and his eyes were rimmed with red. His teal gaze shimmered unhealthily.

            “We’re here, Sousuke,” Gou said and pulled his head down onto her shoulder. She stroked his forehead gently. “It’s…it’s okay. We’re safe. For now.”

            “Where…where are we? What happened?” Sousuke croaked out, allowing himself to be moved. Rin rubbed his other arm and shoulder, trying to relax him. It didn’t feel like it was helping. He wouldn’t put it past Haru to simply dump them from the car if he got too annoyed with his passengers. “Who are _they?_ ”

            “That’s Makoto,” Rin said, pointing at the alpha who had turned back to look at them. “And the guy who’s driving is named Haru. They…well, they saved us.”

            “From what?” Sousuke asked as he squinted up at the front. The sun was still so bright, it must burn Sousuke’s eyes. Rin squeezed his best friend’s arm reassuringly.

            “Storm ate up your town,” Haru supplied. “Found you in the sand.”

            “They’re, they’re sand-dwellers,” Gou told him, glancing nervously at the alpha resting against her. She never stopped stroking his face and hair.

            All three townsfolk looked to the front when they heard a loud snort of laughter. Makoto covered his mouth with a hand. “Oh, Haru, did you hear?” he asked, looking at his partner. “Sand-dweller. Haven’t heard that in a while.”

            “Better than savages,” Haru hummed. He looked back at them. “Makoto, give them water.”

            “Oh! Yes,” the brunet said and scrambled to find several water skins secured under the seat. He handed two back to the three. Rin hadn’t realized just how thirsty he had been until that first splash of water hit his lips. And it was pure, clear, soothing his throat. Water had never tasted this good in his entire life.

            “We’ll be driving for a while longer,” Haru said.

            Makoto nodded. “You should try to get some rest while you can. Then we’ll see about patching up that shoulder,” he said, looking at Sousuke. The other alpha had closed his eyes and hadn’t opened them. Rin held his hand over Sousuke’s mouth because for one panicked second he thought his best friend had died without any of them noticing. When he felt the steady breathing against his hand, he realized Sousuke had simply lost consciousness again. He looked at Makoto and then his sister and nodded.

            Sousuke’s uninjured shoulder offered a comfortable resting place. Or maybe it was just because he was so exhausted that it didn’t much matter what he was laying on. Either way, Rin was asleep once more before he knew it, collapsed against his best friend and still clutching Gou’s hand.

 

-

 

            Haru glanced at the three in the back seat. They had fallen asleep a while ago, which he was glad for. He preferred quiet. Only half paying attention to the wheel between his fingers (because really, what would he run into?), he looked at Makoto.

            “Mako,” Haru hummed. He flicked a strand of hair from his face and stared out across the expanse of sand.

            “Yes Haru?” Makoto replied. “Want me to drive?”

            The blue eyed man shook his head, because that wasn’t it. “Is this a good idea?”

            “What do you mean?” Makoto asked his partner, green eyes shimmering. He watched Haru carefully and Haru knew he was doing it even without turning to look at him. The cliffs had come into view, a dark blue blur, a little after the three townsfolk had fallen asleep.

            Haru motioned back at those in the back. “Will they be able to survive? Wouldn’t it be easier to put them out of their miseries?”

            Makoto didn’t answer for a long while but Haru knew that he had heard him. “I understand where you’re coming from, Haru,” he murmured quietly. “But you know we couldn’t simply leave them. Then we’d be no better than the raiders.”

            “Two alphas,” Haru said, gripping the smooth bone of the steering wheel. “Yes, one’s female. I don’t care. _Two alphas_. And a beta that doesn’t make any sense. I’m…nervous.”

            “I know,” Makoto said.

            “Rin isn’t _right_. There’s something _wrong_ with him,” the blue eyed one hissed and tightened his grip on the steering wheel.. He liked how the surface felt: smooth, almost soft, almost velvety. It also gave him a sense of victory, remembering how he came to get the bones.

            “Are you more worried about him, or about his friend?” his partner asked gently.

            Haru didn’t answer, keeping his eyes ahead of him. He ran his thumbs across the gentle ridges of the bone.

            The brunet nodded slowly, knowingly, and gazed out at the hills of sand. It didn’t matter who he was more worried about, when it came down to it. Haru knew that Makoto knew that. They were just two different unknowns that would present very different but possibly very devastating problems. “You know I’d do anything to protect you,” he replied. “I’ll keep you safe.”

It was getting late. The sun was finally setting, creeping towards the horizon. Haru figured they would arrive at the caves before day break next day. He simply glanced at the alpha and nodded.

            “I know.”

            “I’m going to nap, wake me if you’d like me to drive,” Makoto said gently and stretched out, closing his eyes. Haru kept his eyes on the expanse before him, although sometimes he would glance up at the sky. Stars had started to come out, to twinkle in the inky void above them. He had heard that before it happened, the stars didn’t shine this brightly. The moon wasn’t as clear. And the sun wasn’t quite as harsh. But they said that the radiation that ate at the world had eaten at the sky as well, lessening the layers between them and what was above.

            He didn’t care. This was the world he lived in, would live in until the end. No chance of green pastures like the three townsfolk had grown up with. For a moment he allowed his mind to wander. What would it be like to grow up surrounded by loved ones? To feel grass beneath his feet and the sun on his face and be able to go into a house when it was too hot?

Not having to run from raiders and rape gangs and the ‘kings’ of the citadels. At least he wasn’t female. At least the ability for male omegas to breed had died out not ten years afterIt had happened. He shook his head violently. It had started out as a nice dream and turned into his nightmares. Instead of dwelling on it, he focused on the cliffs growing closer.

            A grunt caused him to glance into the back seats. It was the big one, Sousuke. His eyes were half-lidded, and he was sure he was still half-asleep. “Where’re we going?” the alpha mumbled, unable to adjust with the two redheaded siblings sprawled on him.

            “Somewhere safe,” Haru replied, eyes flickering back to the expanse of nothingness in front of him.

            “Who are you?” Sousuke asked. His words were nothing but mumbles, and he doubted the alpha would even remember this conversation when he woke up. His eyes shimmered with fever. It had obviously worsened since he had woken previous.

            “Haru,” he said.

            Sousuke shifted himself up. Neither of the redheads woke, just moved closer to the dark-haired man. He tried to focus on Haru, the blue eyed man could see his struggle in one of the mirrors.

            “Don’t hurt yourself,” he mumbled softly. A frown graced the man’s hard features.

            “You’re…” Sousuke stopped talking, obviously fishing for words. He mouthed and looked around. Sleep tugged at his features.

            “Go to sleep,” Haru said frowning. “You’re sick.”

            “Eh,” Sousuke grunted and met Haru’s bright blue gaze. “You’re an omega. Aren’t you. Yeah, you are.” And then he was drifting off again, his cheek resting on Rin’s head. Haru gripped the wheel tight, until his knuckles were white and he had to try his best to clamp down on the bubbling panic that was starting to consume him. Nothing would come of it, the man was feverish and delusional, he wouldn’t remember this conversation. Haru prayed he didn’t.

            They would need to clean his shoulder as soon as they arrived. Sickness had already set in, he was sure Sousuke’s skin would be hot and damp if he checked.

            “You’re fine,” Haru whispered to himself and blew a strand of hair from his face. Soon, they’d reach the cliffs. Soon they’d be safe again.

            Well, he hoped they would be.

 

-

 

            The air was cool. Cool like the air around the ponds back in Samezuka. For a moment Rin kept his eyes tightly closed, hoping that maybe, _just maybe_ , it had all been a horrible nightmare. Of course the desert hadn’t eaten up the town. He was safe and sound in his bed, and he should get up soon or else Gou would barge in and throw something at his head.

            His breathe caught in his throat and he started to cough, hacking on the dryness in his lungs. He opened his eyes and knew that it hadn’t been a dream and that it _had_ all happened. He tried to swallow, but it felt like he had inhaled rocks. Which, he supposed, he had.

            “Hey.”

            Rin looked around. Haru stood beside him, holding the door of the truck open and staring at him with those large blue eyes of his. They seemed to bore into him and the redhead glanced away swiftly to check out their surroundings. The truck was parked and well hidden beside a stretching expanse of sandstone cliffs that rose into the sky above them. He blinked dizzily. It seemed to reach up for miles.

            Haru offered his hand to Rin and after a moment, the young man took it and stepped from the vehicle. He nearly collapsed as he stepped down; his legs had seized up from lack of motion. The dark haired man beside him stepped close and caught him. One thing was for sure, Haru was a lot stronger than he looked. The redhead gazed at the other as he tried to steady himself enough to stand on his own. Instead, Haru simply slid his arm around his waist and allowed him to lean against him.

            “Where are we?” Rin asked. His voice was hoarse and painful and he winced a little, scowling at how badly he sounded.

            “Safe,” The blue eyed man replied, causing the redhead to click his tongue in annoyance at the lack of any real answer. He was distracted from demanding a proper answer when Sousuke, Makoto and Gou came around the other side of the truck. Makoto had an arm around Sousuke’s waist, Sousuke’s arm around his shoulder. The hand gripping the brunet’s jacket was white with pain as the other alpha gripped hard.

            Haru looked between them all then at Makoto and nodded.

            “Gou, go between your brother and us,” the brunet said. “Haru will lead the way.”

            And with that, the blue eyed man was walking forward and Rin had to step with him if he didn’t want to be dragged. Away from the truck they went, towards the sandstone cliffs before them. Haru led the way into a well-hidden crevice in the cliff-face, to Rin’s displeasure. The redhead sucked in a hurried breathe as they entered the blackness of the natural tunnel.

            “Why’re we going here?” he asked. He had given up speaking at full volume, it hurt too much, so he simply whispered. Haru was close enough to hear him clearly anyway.

            “Safe,” the blue eyed man replied again and Rin thought he had glanced at him. He couldn’t see two inches in front of his face though, so he didn’t know if the other had actually turned to him or not. On edge and very nervous, Rin allowed himself to be guided down. The path was dark, at least darker than it had been outside. Outside the sun had obviously been getting closer to the horizon. But in here, it was black, pitch black. Haru seemed to know exactly where he was going and didn’t bump Rin into anything.

            But soon, the redhead realized the darkness wasn’t quite as black, that it was slowly lightening. He didn’t know how, they were obviously still deep under the ground, until he spotted a patch of moss clinging to the cool stone wall. It was glowing gently, enough that Rin could now see Haru’s form beside him. The further they went, the more frequent the glowing moss got, until Rin could make out the path’s details and could see a little in front of them.

            Walking through the soft glow of bioluminescent moss and stone was surreal. Rin had lost all sense of where they were, which direction the exit into the barren desert was, or how deep they had gone. For all he knew, they had gone up. Or down. Or were still at the same level as the sands. The cliffs were large. He hoped that Haru and Makoto weren’t planning on simply leaving them here to rot. They didn’t seem the type, but the blue eyed man was standoffish and cold and he had been the one to say “put him out of his misery” when speaking about Sousuke. Who knew, maybe they _were_ cannibals and they simply didn’t want to share with the raiding party they had run from. Or maybe they were a part of the raiding party, and it was much easier to bring them if they trusted them. So to speak.

            But the redhead didn’t see any other choice. Sousuke was very hurt, sagging heavily against Makoto’s side with his eyes half lidded. He didn’t know if his best friend was conscious or not, or if he was slowly losing consciousness, or if he was slowly dying.

            Or if all of them were slowly dying.

            Or were walking into a trap. He rubbed his sweating palms on his sand-covered pants, a strong shiver running through his body. Haru glanced at him. Of course he had felt that, his arm was wrapped around Rin’s waist. The redhead sent him a weak smile and stumbled across the stone.

            “Almost there,” Haru hummed softly. Rin simply nodded. His skin stung, burned, his eyes watered and his head ached. Well. His whole body ached, if he was going to go into that. He allowed Haru to hold up a little more of his weight, closing his eyes. Trusting this scavenger he knew nothing about to not walk him into anything. Trust. It had been something he had never had to worry about before. Everyone in Samezuka was trustworthy for the most part. White lies, little pranks, but nothing more. But trusting this…drifter, sand-dweller, scavenger, might turn out horrible. Bloody. _Deadly_.

            He didn’t want to think of all of the horrible outcomes but he couldn’t stop himself. Not after all of the stories he had grown up hearing from the elders. Not from what Makoto had said during the ride here. Not with his imagination running rampant, painting colorfully terrifying scenarios.

            What if they had left people behind? What if there were many more still alive at his home, had somehow survived like he and Gou and Sousuke had survived? And they had just _left_ them? To be taken by the raiders. He swallowed hard, throat burning and dry, and gripped at Haru’s jacket. His mother; his friends; the elders; the children he tutored. Sold, beaten, _eaten_.

            He didn’t know exactly what the raiders were capable of. Rin couldn’t quite believe some of the stories he had been told, even with his mind doing its best to come up with the _worst scenario possible_.

            The sound of dripping water on water caused Rin to open his eyes. And when he did, he gaped. Before them stretched a wide expanse of water, crystal clear. Fresh air drifted across his face and he looked up to the ceiling of the cavern. Breaks in the rock let slivers of the outside in and he could see the weak morning sunlight filtering in. It reflected off the water’s surface and the smooth stone. That combined with the glowing moss and rocks, Rin could see relatively easily without straining his eyes.

            “Undress,” Haru said, pulling his arm away.

            Rin looked at him, jaw dropping. He saw those blue eyes flicker to his sharp teeth quickly, and for a moment the redhead could’ve sworn that he had seen fear within those beautiful eyes. But it was gone a moment later. Maybe he was hallucinating. His body hurt enough, he wouldn’t be surprised.

            “The water will help your skin,” Haru explained with an exasperated sigh, fixing his sharp gaze onto Rin’s. He motioned over to Makoto, Gou and Sousuke. The two former were going through the slow and careful process of undressing the latter, who was now unconscious.

            “Take off your clothes,” the man before him said rougher than before then reached forward to take off his shirt for him. “Your clothes are covered in sand anyway.”

            “Okay, okay,” Rin said, tugging himself away from the blue eyed man. He was scowling again, but Rin ignored him. He undressed, dumping his clothes on the rock. He suddenly felt very self-conscious. He hadn’t ever really been completely naked before, not like this. Sure when he swam, he had to change, but he usually kept his back turned, taking special care to not look at others. And Haru was standing mere feet from him.

            He seemed amused at Rin’s obvious discomfort, if the small smile curving his lips was any indication. But he said nothing, simply grabbing the redhead’s hand and leading him to the water’s edge. “In,” he demanded. Rin sent him a glare but slowly stepped into the water anyway.

            The relief was immediate and he let out a soft groan as his warm skin met the cool water. Even skin that had not been exposed to the storm, like his legs and chest, felt better within the water. He sank in until he was sitting on the smooth rocky bottom, water up to his chin, and simply sat.

            The water was taking away all of the pain from his sand-blisters and the sunburn that covered him. He realized even covered with his clothes (sleep clothes, so they didn’t really cover as much as his normal clothes), sand had infiltrated every single area of his body. He dunked his head, and soon was scrubbing at his body viciously, not caring that it made his skin burn, he just needed this sand _off_. He was sure such rough treatment of his sensitive, injured skin was not the smartest decision but he wanted to wash the reminder of what had happened off his skin.

            Once Rin had scrubbed everything he could possibly scrub he sank back into the water. Allowing the cool embrace to calm his skin once more, he looked over to where the others were. Gou, stripped down to her undergarments, was dabbing at Sousuke’s forehead with a wet cloth as Makoto and Haru cleaned him.

            The alpha had obviously woken up, partially because of the water Rin figured and partially because Haru was cleaning his torn up shoulder and he could tell the small man was not coddling Sousuke in the slightest.

            “That fucking hurts,” he growled, jerking away from Haru’s hands, but the blue eyed man simply grabbed his arm back with a glare.

            “If we don’t clean it, it’ll get infected,” he hissed. “Means I have to get all the sand out. Stop whining.”

            Rin couldn’t imagine how painful it was. Blood drifted through the water as Haru’s hands continued to move and he watched as the alpha’s face screwed up, teeth gritted.

            “It’ll feel better in a little,” Makoto hummed then looked over to Rin and smiled. The brunet left Sousuke’s side and came closer to him. He had gotten rid of his boots and had rolled up his pants so that he could step into the water. A rock protruded from the water near where Rin sat and the brunet alpha settled down on it. “How do _you_ feel?”

            “Don’t know,” he replied honestly. Less and less did he feel these two would finish them off and eat them, not with the treatment they were giving them. He dropped his voice, eyes on his best friend. “Will Sou be alright?”

            Makoto looked thoughtful for a moment then smiled. “Haru’s good at this stuff, I’m sure he’ll be better. Although it will hurt for a while. And I’m sure he won’t have as much range of motion once it’s healed,” he replied.

            “It needs to be sewn up,” Haru said in a matter-of-fact manner. His eyes were narrowed and he was looking down at Sousuke’s shoulder carefully, prodding the skin with his slender fingers. The alpha winced with every other touch.

            Rin watched as all the remaining color drained from Sousuke’s face. “Hell no,” he choked out.

            “Hell yes,” Haru muttered, glaring at him. “It won’t heal otherwise.”

            Sewing up Sousuke’s shoulder ended up being even more painful than cleaning it out. He was gasping and whimpering, holding Rin’s hand so tight that he lost circulation, and then Gou took his hand instead and he did the same to hers. Rin had to admit she handled it better than he had. His cheeks were tear stained after Haru was finished, putting the needle and thread away, wiping down the blood that had been produced from the harsh treatment. It hurt him again when Makoto wrapped it tightly in cleaned cloth. With Makoto’s last tug, the other alpha let out a loud cry and tried to jerk away.

            Spent and in pain, Sousuke collapsed against several blankets the two scavengers had lain out on the stone. His eyes were fever bright, the redhead could see that he was sick. He drifted off as Gou dabbed at his forehead once more.

            “He’s really hot,” she murmured to her brother when he came over. The two sand-dwellers had moved a little bit away, close to their fire pit and were arguing about something. Haru was frowning up at Makoto, but Rin couldn’t hear what they were saying.

            “I think he’s got a fever,” Rin said, chewing at his lip with his sharp teeth. Gou nodded and rested her head on Rin’s shoulder for a moment. He looked up over to where the other two were; it seemed that Haru had won whatever they were arguing about, because Makoto came padding over and sat down next to them.

            “Haru’ll make some food,” he said. “You should try and get him to drink water.”

            Rin nodded and looked back at his best friend. “He’ll be fine,” he said, but even as he said it he could feel tears pricking at his eyes. He swallowed at the lump in his throat and shook his head. He would not cry. Even though he wanted to. He wanted to simply collapse against his sister and his best friend and sob, like he had done in the truck. Let Makoto and Haru watch, he didn’t care in the slightest. But he swallowed down the sob that fought to break free and focused hard on Sousuke’s face.

 

-

 

            The three were out before they had finished all their food. The girl had joined her brother and her friend and dozed off onto the large alpha’s shoulder. Rin stretched out beside her and reached for her hand, gripping it even in sleep. Like they were still children. Haru could almost imagine them younger, much younger, sleeping in the safety of their home and bundled up in a pile of blankets. Probably while their mothers cooked dinner and checked on them every once and a while. He shook his head and turned away.

            Gathering up the empty tins gave him something to do for a moment, and he dumped them all into a pile to be cleaned later. He was feeling drained, overwhelmed. For a moment, he stared frozen into the heart of the fire. Sometimes he thought he could see things moving there, in the flames. Reaching out to him, calling to him. Unbidden thoughts washed over him, memories of searing heat and hungry flames and terror.

            Haru jumped violently when a hand came to rest on his shoulder. “Haru?” Makoto asked him gently. The shorter turned to look up at the other man, blinking rapidly to clear his vision. He carefully pulled away from his hand.

            “I’m going for a swim,” he replied bluntly and walked away. He didn’t want to talk about it, didn’t want to think about it. The water would offer solace, safety, peace. The three would be fine where they were. And if the brunet wanted to join him, then he would join him. So he took the short moss-covered path back to the edge of the lake. There, he stripped his clothes and tossed them onto a rock beside the water before wading in. No diving tonight. It might wake the ‘guests’.

            The water still comforted him and soon he sank down until only his head was above the surface. Eyeless fish darted away from him as he swam lazily, their pale scales glowing in the soft phosphorescence the stone here provided. The glow worms on the ceiling of the cave ebbed and flowed with their glow, like stars, and Haru simply drifted. The thin beams of sunlight coming through from the outside created pools of gold. He avoided them.

            A gentle splash alerted him to Makoto’s presence. He righted himself and opened his eyes, watching as his partner swam to him.

            “What’s wrong, Haru?” the brunet hummed, treading water in front of Haru. The omega glanced away, staring at a pale pink starfish that was creeping across the rocks some yards away under the water. Treading water was second nature, he didn’t even recognize it now, but he did feel when Makoto moved closer and cupped his face.

            “Something’s bothering you,” the alpha said and Haru looked back at him, eyes a little too wide. Many things were bothering him. Many things always bothered him. He knew many things bothered Makoto as well. He concentrated on the pull of his leg muscles as he kicked, focused on the gentle current created by Makoto’s strong, slow tread.

            “What’s new?” he mumbled.

            “Haru,” Mako sighed, sadly. He caressed the omega’s cheek with his thumb. He looked like he wanted to say something more, but instead only continued with: “Remember, I’ll always protect you.”

            Makoto’s warmth felt good, but Haru pulled himself away anyway and slowly swam back until he could touch ground. Taking in deep, steadying breathes, he stared down at his feet in the water as cool, gentle ripples lapped at his stomach. Makoto joined him a moment later and slid his arms around Haru’s waist. 

            “He knew I was an omega,” Haru said softly, stretching his neck to allow the alpha access. The brunet peppered light kisses on his pale shoulder. “Sousuke did.”

            “It’ll be okay,” Makoto said, kissing his way up to Haru’s ear. He sucked gently at the gland there, causing the omega’s breath to hitch. Pleasure chased its way down Haru’s spine and he couldn’t help but press back. The feel of Makoto behind him gave him comfort. Safety. Alpha’s took care of omega’s, after all. Instinct, maybe? Or maybe it was just because Makoto had been with him most of his life, and he was a physical manifestation of security and consistency that every other aspect of Haru’s life lacked.

            “Because you’ll be here,” the blue eyed man hummed, still staring down into the water. He watched as Makoto’s hands rubbed small circles on his stomach.

            “Because I’ll be here,” he replied.

Haruka let out a soft gasp when Makoto’s large hands slowly began to travel. He wrapped his strong fingers around Haru’s half-hardened length.

            “I’ll be here, and I’ll look after you however you need,” the brunet said and gripped Haru’s jaw with gentle strength, pulling him back to kiss him slow and deep. Haru shuddered, back arching so he could kiss the alpha more fully. His shudders increased as Makoto pressed his tongue passed his lips. His legs were weakening by the second.

            The alpha rubbed at Haru’s jaw and throat before letting the kiss fall, freeing his other hand to do what he liked. Makoto caressed his chest and nipples, tweaking them gently until they were erect. Haru stumbled sideways and Makoto moved with him until the smaller could press his hand against the rock face. The blue eyed man dropped his head, letting out soft whimpers fall from his lips as the alpha’s hand slid down Haru’s abdomen and gripped his hip, rubbing where his leg and hip joined.

            The omega let out a breathy whine when the alpha teased his thighs. “M-Makoto,” he gasped out. His body was so _hot_ now, the water doing nothing to cool him down. And as the male behind him stroked life into his cock, lips now lapping against those sensitive glands steadily, he could feel himself loosening, slickening. Makoto knew exactly what to do to unravel him, and it was obvious he was trying his best at that moment.

            He didn’t want to wake the others. Didn’t want them to see. Especially since Sousuke knew, somehow _knew_ , what he was, that he was nothing more than a little _bitch_. He didn’t know what kind of man Sousuke was, but he had never met an alpha except for Makoto who could restrain themselves. He covered his mouth with a hand.

            So when Makoto pushed his hand away and pushed his fingers past his lips, Haru allowed it, sucking them enthusiastically. It muffled Haruka’s gasp as Makoto entered him, enough to not wake the others, and he was glad. When Makoto started to move, it was slow and gentle and Haru’s worries disappeared as he writhed against the smooth rock surface. By the time Makoto came, Haru had cum twice, his body crackling and shaking with pleasure. He couldn’t stop the sob that broke from his throat at the feeling of Makoto’s knot, of how full he felt and how _needed_ he was. He was only partially aware when the brunet pulled free after his knot had passed but that was okay. Haru knew Makoto understood. He let the alpha pick him up and dry him off before they returned to where the others still slept. They changed into loose clothes and stretched out beside the low fire, and Haru stared across the flames at the group completely oblivious to the world. How was it to be innocent? To sleep like the dead?

            He rolled over and closed his eyes and slept.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think they were out of character. I struggle. Writing is hard. But I also am super motivated to write this story, haven't been this motivated for a story for a long while, so...hopefully that'll hold out!


	3. When the Sky Comes Down over this Ghost Town

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Makoto and Sousuke set off for the citadel and Rin and Haru have a race.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A CHAPTER. I HAVE WRITTEN A CHAPTER. HERE IT IS. AND IT DOESN'T HALF SUCK.  
> I rewrote this chapter like FIVE BILLION TIMES okay maybe not that much, but it felt like it. Because I didn't know what the fuck to do with it. But I figured it out. Sort of. It's kind of a transition chapter. Things are gonna start happening, methinks.... Is it starting too fast? I DON'T KNOW. I'M BAD AT THIS. PACING IS HARD. WRITING THINGS THAT ARE LONG AND HAVE LOTS OF PLOT IS ALSO HARD. WHAT DO.
> 
> Chapter Title: Lyrics from Egypt Central's Ghost Town.

 Chapter 3: When the Sky Comes Down over this Ghost Town               

_The sand scratched at his sunburnt skin and his throat was as dry as the air surrounding him. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t think. His eyes were filled with grit and he rubbed at them viciously in an attempt to see._

_The desert stretched out before him when he opened them._

_The trees were naked of bark and leaves and branches, ripped to shreds by the mighty winds. Houses were crushed and covered._

_And Rin was all alone._

_He collapsed into the sand, ignoring the way it burned his already blistering skin, and cried. Tears streaming down his face, he looked left and right over and over again, and all he saw was blood stained sand and the ruins of his home. His family. His friends. Gone, all gone. All that remained were their broken bodies, painting the desert red._

_A rumble like thunder reached his ears and he raised his head. He looked to the horizon and stumbled to his feet. The wall of sand was fast approaching, the storm already reaching him, ready to eat him up. He struggled to run but his legs were being dragged down and he was being swallowed by the desert._

_Rin screamed, fighting against the burning earth that surrounded him and his throat filled and he was choking, but he was choking on water instead and he couldn’t breathe or see and he was so numb._

_When his head broke the surface he didn’t know if he was swimming in searing sand or ice-cold water, he just struggled and thrashed._

_The eyes of his lost family and friend bore down on him as he struggled to keep his head above the surface._

_Screams and yells filled his ears as he beat his arms. **You left us. We were still there. You left us to be eaten how dare you leave us**. Rin couldn’t cover his ears, not if he wanted to stay afloat, but he would be sucked under at this rate anyway. Their voices, the voices of everyone who had ever been in his life, drilled into his head. _

                Rin sat up swiftly, forehead covered in a cold sweat and clapped a hand over his mouth to muffle the cry he had been about to make. Tears threatened to spill over as he heaved air into his aching lungs. He scrubbed at his eyes, willing the tears away.

                Except they weren’t aching. They had recovered, as much as they could, from his burial in the desert. He was in the cave Makoto and Haruka called home (for the time being) and he was _safe_. As safe as he could be in the world he now knew as reality. He wiped his forehead with the back of his hand and let out a slow, controlled breathe before looking around.

                Rin had lost track of how much time had passed since that night. It was hard to tell when the only indication of sunlight came from pinprick holes in the cavern ceiling. He only stepped out after night had fallen, too, so he didn’t know, but it felt like forever. In reality, he was sure it had only been about a fortnight. Two weeks was still a long time.

                Gou was curled at his side and he was glad he hadn’t woken her with his nightmare. He had never had nightmares his entire life, not until his town was buried and now it was a nightly occurrence. Several times he had woken himself and his companions with his screams. He was thankful he hadn’t done that this time. He felt weak when that happened.

                Sousuke was stretched out on Gou’s other side, arm doing much better than those first days. He could now move it, although it still hurt him. They were keeping a close eye on it and so far it was healing as well as it could. His skin, like Rin’s, wasn’t quite as blistered, but still sand-beat and rough.

                He turned his head to where he knew his other two companions had been resting previously. Rin looked at them as companions now, no longer worried that they would kill them in their sleep or eat them. Haruka and Makoto had done nothing but offer them the chance for a new life, even if Haruka was easily annoyed when their learning curve was slower than desired.

                Makoto was nowhere to be seen, the space he had been the previous evening empty. Haruka was sitting up, arms curled around his bent knees. Makoto had told Rin Haru’s full name the third day they were there in the cave with them, when the dark-haired man had left, frustrated with something he and Sousuke had said. And he knew he hated it when he was called that. Rin still liked the name.

                He watched the slender man, trying to focus his sleep-heavy eyes. Haru was not moving, he was barely breathing from what Rin could see. His face was expressionless, void of everything, even more blank and doll-like than as per usual. A strong shiver went down the redhead’s spine. Something was wrong. Haru was simply staring across at nothing, at the stone face, stock still.

                This wasn’t the first time Rin had seen the black-haired man this way. But he still didn’t know what to do about it. Or what was happening. It had happened once before a week into their stay, when Rin had found Haru sitting up against the stone face with his eyes glassy and unseeing, chest rising and falling so slowly he didn’t know if he was still alive.

Rin had yelled for Makoto.

                Rin got to his feet and walked slowly to the motionless man. He crouched in front of him and cautiously reached out to touch him. Haru blinked, jerked backwards. It seemed to take him several seconds to collect himself and figure out just where he was, and then he unfolded and stretched his limbs.

                “Yes?” he asked as he stood up, arching his back until Rin heard a myriad of pops echo through the quiet space.

                “You were just,” Rin started then changed his mind, “never mind, uh, where’s Makoto?”

                “Probably outside,” Haru replied.

                Behind him, Rin heard the sounds of Sousuke or Gou or both stirring. Probably their voices. Rin nodded absently and in the moment of silence his stomach growled. He grimaced. He  had never had to deal with going hungry for long periods of time before, but he was slowly getting used to it. Although Haru and Makoto had been sharing the food they had been able to scrape together, it wasn’t much split between five people, three of whom were alphas.

                Haru’s eyes were filled with an amused light and moved to the bags.

                “Why’s Makoto outside?” Rin asked.

                “Checking on the truck, probably,” Haru said with a vague shrug, pulling out some dried food for them all. “Gonna make a trip.”

                “A trip?” Sousuke asked groggily from where he was sitting up. Gou had gotten to her feet already and was stretching, just like Haru, before pulling her hair back. Then she turned and walked down the short path to the lake. Rin figured she was going to bathe.

                “Hn,” Haru replied. “To the citadel.”

                “Why?” Rin asked as he took the food Haru offered him. Sousuke accepted what Haru offered him as well without comment. The first time, Sousuke and Rin had complained about it, that it wasn’t really food and how were they supposed to survive off of it? It resulted in neither of them getting to eat, because apparently Haru held grudges.

                “Running out of food, need supplies,” the dark-haired man said with a shrug as he sucked on a piece of dried fish. As if it were the most delicious thing he had ever tasted. Rin still hadn’t figured out Haru’s obsession with fish.

                “Will you go?”

                Haru shook his head. “Makoto will. Maybe he’ll take one of you,” he stated and fell silent. Rin ate the food he had been given, ignoring the texture and taste as best as he could. It didn’t taste bad, but it didn’t taste good. He wondered why Haru wasn’t going to go. Maybe they wanted to keep their camp safe.

                Not for the first time, Rin wondered _what_ Haru was. He wasn’t an alpha, Rin figured that much out. Gou would’ve told him, it would’ve been apparent. But he just couldn’t tell if he was an omega or a beta. Did it really matter? Probably not. Was he dying of curiosity? Hell yes. He had only known one omega, Aiichirou. But neither Haru nor Makoto spoke about what they were, it didn’t seem to matter, so Rin didn’t push it.

                The reappearance of Makoto drew the redhead’s attention away from his musings.

                The brunet alpha had black oil on his hands and some on his forehead but he didn’t seem to care. His suntanned arms were exposed and not for the first time Rin saw the coarse scars that decorated those broad shoulders.

Rin had so many questions, about so many things, but he kept silent.

                Haru looked up at the alpha. Makoto smiled. “Think I’m going to leave today,” he hummed, running his fingers through his hair. The grease from the truck made it stick up. “Raiding parties should be home.”

                The blue-eyed man simply nodded and finished his meal.

                Makoto turned to the other two men. Sousuke had finished his food without complaint, swallowing the last of the leathery dried fish he had been given. “It would be easier if I had company.”

                “What? To the citadel?” Rin asked. Makoto nodded, but his gaze drifted over to Sousuke seconds later.

                “It’d be safer for another alpha,” the brunet murmured. “Less dangerous.” Sousuke scowled but nodded all the same, slowly, as if he were unsure of what he was signing up for. Makoto smiled. “Great. You can come with me.”

                “Gou could go with you, too,” Rin suggested. He didn’t really know why he had said it, and he caught the swift glance Sousuke sent him. Makoto shrugged and shook his head.

                “We don’t need everyone to come,” the brunet alpha stated. He turned to Sousuke again. “We’ll be leaving shortly.”

                “Okay,” Sousuke said, still looking unsure and bemused. He stood up and rolled his shoulders carefully before getting dressed.

                Rin sat back down on the ragged blanket and watched Makoto navigate around their camp, collecting this or that. He stopped to murmur quietly to Haru, and although he strained he couldn’t hear exactly what the alpha had said to the smaller man. Haru scowled in response though and shook his head in annoyance, responding with what looked like “I’ll be fine”.

                “How long does it take to get there?” Sousuke asked.

                “It’ll take about two days to get there, if we don’t run into any trouble,” Makoto said pleasantly and Sousuke choked on the water he had been sipping to stare over at the other alpha. Rin agreed. He had never heard of a trip taking that long. But then again, it had probably taken that long to get to the caves after the town was destroyed.

                “And if you do run into trouble?” Rin asked.

                “Then it might take them three or four,” Haru answered.

                “We’ll return in about a week, I figure,” Makoto said, “if everything goes smoothly. Haru knows this.”

                The smaller of the men nodded and sipped at his water container.

                It took Makoto less than ten minutes to get everything together he needed. By that time, Gou had returned in just her undergarments, her other clothes wet and needing to be dry. She settled down onto one of the blankets beside Rin, and had her brother catch her up on what was happening. She was interested, wanted to come with, but Makoto told her no, Sousuke was enough. Rin heard the touch of that _voice_ in Makoto’s words. It made him shiver.

                The two left with quick goodbyes. Haru didn’t seem concerned, but Rin couldn’t shake the rising panic in his stomach as Sousuke’s back disappeared down the crevasse leading outside. He didn’t want to be separated. Even being separated from Makoto, who he had only known for two weeks, felt strange, felt wrong. It gave him an uneasy feeling and he gripped at Gou’s hand.

                Haru continued to sip at his water, gaze unfocused.

 

-

 

                “Will it actually take two days?” Sousuke asked as they took off into the sands. The sun was just breaking the horizon, lighting up the whole world in a golden glow. Makoto glanced at him and nodded with a small smile.

                “Yes,” he said.

                “You make this alone usually?” Sousuke asked, leaning against the metal door of the truck.

                “Generally, yes.”

                “Why?” Sousuke asked, focusing his teal gaze on the other alpha. Makoto seemed like a sweet guy, really nice, but growing up in a world like this must have left scars and not just the ones visible on his arms and shoulders. He was sure there was something _wrong_ with Makoto, just like there was definitely something _wrong_ with Haruka. The smaller man gave Sousuke a strange feeling, and deep down he knew that he was an omega. He hadn’t said anything about it, not to Rin or Gou, or to the slender man himself or to the alpha beside him. It seemed…dangerous territory to breach.

                “Safer,” Makoto said simply and the black-haired man rolled his eyes. He looked out at the expanse of sand. “If we don’t stop to sleep, it shouldn’t take as long.”

                Sousuke grunted and stretched his long legs and continued to stare out at the desert.

                The two sand dwellers were strange. Odd. _Wrong_. Maybe even broken? That seemed harsh, but Sousuke kind of felt like that. The time Rin had yelled for Makoto wasn’t the first time Sousuke had seen Haru in an almost catatonic state. He had woken up several times to find Haru like that, and he didn’t know why or what it meant, but it freaked him out.

                Yet…yet, even with this, Sousuke felt _drawn_ to him. And that freaked him out even more than the catatonic state he had seen Haruka in. Drawn to someone? No. Not possible.

                And Makoto. Makoto was _too happy_. Especially for what their world was.

                He didn’t want to talk, he wasn’t too big on small talk, but the roar of the truck was beating down into his ears and he felt antsy. “How long have you and Haruka been traveling together?” he asked. Why did he ask? He didn’t really care. But he wanted to fill the relative silence.

                “Forever,” Makoto said with a smile. “At least as long as I can remember. He’s older than I am. We stuck together, he looked after me when we were young.”

                “ _He_ looked after _you_?” Sousuke asked, incredulous. He couldn’t even imagine that.

                “That was before either of us presented. And anyway, that has nothing to do with it. Haru’s always stood up for me when I couldn’t. Although I wish he hadn’t,” Makoto said solemnly. Sousuke didn’t say anything, although he didn’t understand what the other alpha meant by that.

                “Your parents didn’t look after you?” the alpha asked and the question made him stiffen. Why had he asked? Thinking of his parents was painful. Although they might not have been the most involved in his life, he still loved them dearly and two weeks wasn’t long enough to heal those scars. But Makoto didn’t seem to notice his discomfort, or if he did he ignored it.

                “Gone, for most of it,” Makoto said. “Haru’s mother looked after us for a little, but that didn’t last long,” Makoto said. “She was dragged off, left us alone. Thankfully we didn’t get dragged off as well.”

                “Dragged off to where?” Sousuke asked, but he didn’t know if wanted to know or not.

                Makoto just smiled at him. There was deep sadness in those bright green eyes, and Sousuke decided he didn’t want to know what had happened to Haru’s mother. It was probably horrible. Sousuke looked away from the man and tried to get more comfortable in the lumpy seat. He needed to adjust faster, get used to the uncomfortable life he now had to live, or else he would be miserable all the time.

                They drove for what seemed like forever. The only way Sousuke could tell time was passing was the rise and fall of the sun. He dozed on and off, lulled to sleep by the roar of the engine and the warmth against his skin. When the sun disappeared and night fell, Makoto stopped the truck so that they could switch drivers.

                Sousuke had no idea where he was, but Makoto told him that if he continued to drive parallel to the cliffs, he’d be fine. And then the brunet alpha was asleep, leaning against the door of the truck. Sousuke didn’t have much experience driving, but since he didn’t have to pay attention to any other cars or a road of any kind, it was easy.

                Stars twinkled down at them and the moon sat plump and full off to his left. It illuminated the sands and the cliffs, making them look silver. He didn’t know how Makoto was able to do this on his own, because he felt tired, felt his eyes drooping, halfway through the night. He didn’t want to wake the other alpha, didn’t want to be viewed as _weak_ , but he didn’t know how much longer he could drive without dozing off.

 

-

 

                Haru spent a good couple of hours in the lake. He didn’t care what Rin or his sister were doing, he needed to distract himself. He was able to catch several fish – small, but still food – during his time. All the while, his thoughts wandered. He had been keeping track. He always kept track. It’d be time soon.

                “Haru,” Rin’s voice reached his ears and he looked over, treading water. The redhead crouched by the water’s edge, his bare feet just touching it. Haru dove under the surface of the water and swam closer to the shore.

                “Do you swim?” Haru asked as a greeting, settling where he could sit on the soft sand and smooth rock of the lake bottom. Rin grinned and nodded, showing all of his pointed, sharp teeth. They made him incredibly nervous and he allowed himself to drift backwards a little, water lapping up to his chin. Not much cover since the water was so clear, but it was better than nothing.

                “Yeah,” Rin said as he pulled his shirt off with excitement, exposing smooth muscles and skin still rough from the sand storm. “Want to race?”

                Haru nodded and pulled himself from the water. He and Rin walked the short distance to a small outcropping where they could get leverage from the stone.

                “How far?” Haru asked, looking at the redhead.

                Rin looked before them. “That rock and back,” he said, motioning to a cluster of rocks protruding out of the water some 50 meters away. Haru smiled slightly. Easily.

                “You call,” the omega said softly, gripping the stone reflexively. A wave of adrenaline flooded through him as he gazed out at the water. He sometimes raced Makoto, but they swam different and he wasn’t much of a threat in a race. Would Rin be able to keep up? Or was he even faster? Did the water accept Rin in the way he had felt it accept him? He supposed he’d find out shortly.

                “3…” Both of them crouched. Haru did it instinctively. “2…” Haru focused his eyes on the clear surface of the lake. It was calling to him, whispering his name in a gentle voice that caressed his ears. “1!” And they were both pushing off the stone and into the water.

                Rin was _strong_. He was ahead of Haru with that single jump, but he knew he’d catch up quick. The adrenaline had doubled, and his head spun with the feeling of it as he pushed himself towards the rocks. Rin was right next to him, they were neck-and-neck, urging each other on without words. There was something about being beside the redhead that Haru had never experienced before, the presence of the other close to him almost touching.

                They turned at the same time, rocketing around back to the shore.

                Haru caught a quick glimpse of Rin as the redhead sent him a wide grin as they both came up to breathe, and he knew that Rin could feel it too. What was it? What was he feeling?

                It was too hard to call, Haru didn’t know who had reached the stone first. Both of them panted hard, heads bowed before Rin looked up and grinned widely at him.

                “That was amazing,” he said as Haru flicked hair and water from his face. “How’d you learn how to swim so well?”

                “Nearly drowned,” Haru said as he shook his head to get more water out of his hair. “Sink or swim, really.” He looked up to catch Rin’s expression fall into one of surprise and pain. Haru cocked his head to the side and raised an eyebrow. “What?”

                “N…nothing,” Rin said. The two of them swam back to the shore and sat on the cool stone, slowly drying off. Haru started to gaze into the crystal clear water of the lake, watching the tiny pinholes in the ceiling and the little dust motes drifting there, and didn’t notice Rin had moved closer to him until the beta had touched his back with light fingers.

                Haru jumped and looked around. Rin’s gaze was fixed on his back and Haru looked away, allowing the redhead to slowly trace the scars that marred the dark haired man’s back. Then they traveled upwards and circled the brand at the base of his skull and pulled back.

                “What are all those?” Rin asked.

                “Scars,” Haru said bluntly. Rin scowled. “My life wasn’t easy like yours.”

                “What’s that on your neck?” the redhead asked. He didn’t seem to really want to know the answer, yet he still asked. Haru let out a soft sigh. It wasn’t like he’d be able to avoid it forever. Makoto had a brand as well, but his was from a different place and on his lower back. After another moment’s thought, Haru figured Rin should learn about the world he lived in, even if it was gruesome and disgusting and harsh. Might as well talk.

                “A brand,” he said.

                “Brand?” Rin repeated, eyes filled with confusion. Oh to be that naïve, Haru thought. To not even know what it was. To never have watched someone scream in agony as the burning iron pressed against their skin or feel it as it melted the flesh on your neck as you choked on your tongue to not cry out.

                “A mark designating me as someone’s property,” Haru explained. Rin’s eyes widened in shock and recoiled. “When I was 14.”

                “How’d they make it?” Rin asked.

                “Piece of metal created in that design,” Haru said and touched the scar lightly, “heated in a fire and pressed against the skin.”

                Rin was looking sick now, his jaw tense as he swallowed. Haru dropped his hand and gave a shrug. “It’s healed now,” he stated simply.

                “That’s horrible,” the redhead said and Haru was shocked to see tears in his eyes. Why was _he_ crying? What was wrong with this man? “You were owned?”

                “Yes,” Haru said. He didn’t comment on what the small O below the main brand meant, not to Rin. Not when Rin could tell Sousuke, and he didn’t know what Sousuke would. To be fair, he didn’t know what Rin would do either, if he found out he was an omega.

                Not that he could hide it for much longer. He could feel it. His heat was coming. Tonight or tomorrow, it would set in and there was no way of hiding it. He was glad Makoto had taken the other male alpha. He watched Rin work through what he had been told, his expression varying from fear to disgust to shock. It would be funny if there weren’t other things on Haru’s mind.

 

                It started in the middle of the night, waking him from where he slept beside the cavern wall. A little ways away, Rin and Gou were fast asleep close together, Gou’s deep red hair covering her brother’s face. He didn’t seem to even notice.

                The omega stumbled to his feet, head spinning. His body was so hot and he knew it would only get worse. He walked as quickly and quietly away from their small camp as possible, not wanting to wake the two siblings. He just caught sight of Gou’s eyes. She had woken, she was watching him. But she was an alpha, of course it would wake her.

“Don’t worry,” she mouthed at him, obviously not wanting to wake her brother. “You're safe.” Then she turned onto her side and settled back down.

                Relief washed through Haru as he walked away, passed the lake to the small cave he had found several months ago, allowing himself some privacy as he panted softly. He curled up tight in the corner, swallowing his gasps and whimpers. He knew that if he touched himself, he wouldn’t be able to stay silent, that he would most definitely wake Rin. And being close to _anyone_ , even just a beta, would be difficult, impossible, for Haru. So he bit down hard on his hand as a shudder of arousal washed through him.

                It was going to be a long seven days.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh god they were so ooc here weren't they they totally were oh god I'll try harder next time.


	4. You'll be First Against the Wall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sousuke's constant state of mind is shock and panic as Makoto leads him through the Citadel. Rin finds out what Haru is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LOOK. ANOTHER CHAPTER. SO SOON. I'M ON A ROLL MOTHA' FUCKA'S. Anyway. It new chapter. Plz read. Plz comment cuz i wanna know wat u think.   
> They might be out of character, I don't knooooooowwww, I'm having trouuubbbbllllllleeeeee. Also, Kisi.
> 
> Chapter title: Lyrics from Ghost Town by Egypt Central

                “There it is,” Makoto pointed out, forearms resting on the steering wheel; during his time driving, the dark haired alpha had found that it was made of bone, smoothed down by sand and hands. It made him shudder and he didn’t dare ask what the bone had come from.

Far in the distance Sousuke could see something built off of the cliff face, stone spires twisting up into the sky and tall metal stacks spewing dark smoke. Sousuke had never seen something so hideous in his life and he screwed up his face at the thought of them being right in the thick of it.

                “How far off is it?” he asked the other alpha, gaze fixed on the heavy clouds of smoke that created a thick haze around the cliffs.

                “Not far,” Makoto replied.

Sousuke was beginning to realize that time, at least minutes and hours, weren’t of much use out here when you had nothing to keep track of it with. Days were easily tracked but they started to blend together into a mass of sunrises and sunsets. Did it really matter out here?

                Sousuke was silent the rest of the way, chewing over his thoughts. He was having trouble adjusting to all of this. Sure, the cave was much different than anything, but it was kind of like camping; an adventure they were on. Almost not real, like they could go back home soon when the novelty wore off. His shoulder always reminded him that this wasn’t true, because it still hurt, because it was still healing, and Haruka had said that it probably would always hurt. But he liked to pretend. Seeing civilization, however, made everything surprisingly solid. _This_ was the world. _This_ had been the world for a very long time, and he had had no idea. No idea how hard it was, how harsh, that there were people still fighting to survive after it all.

                He was jarred from his thoughts when the truck rumbled to a halt beside the cliffs and the engine fell silent. The city, town, dwelling, whatever it was, was still several miles off.

                “We walk from here,” Makoto said.

                “Why?”

The brunet alpha chuckled and Sousuke knew he had said something ridiculously naïve. “I’d like to keep the truck. And Haru wouldn’t forgive me if we lost it,” he said. “If we brought it in it would be stripped or taken, for sure. Now drink some water and we’ll start walking.”

Sousuke did as he was told, taking several deep drinks from the container Makoto handed him. Then the other alpha held out a bandana to him for him to take, and the dark-haired man could only stare blankly at it until Makoto shook it gently, forcing him to grab it from his hand. And then they were off, out into the sand.

Near the cliffs the ground was packed down making it easier for them to walk. It still took them a good while to get there and by the time they reached the outskirts where small shacks made of anything the dwellers could get their hands on, he was sweating and panting and parched. He didn’t know why they couldn’t have brought water with them.

                Makoto pulled the bandana around his neck up to cover most of his face and glanced at Sousuke, nodding at him to do the same. Sousuke had been wondering what it was for. Maybe to hide their identity? To keep sand from their nose and mouth? He did what he was directed to do, covering up his face, and followed after the slightly shorter man, taking in everything around him. So many questions. He knew that his best friend was the same, but like Sousuke, hadn’t wanted to broach any of the topics. He, like Rin, didn’t really want the answers.

                Shelters made of what looked like animal hide spotted the area and grew denser. As they walked through, Sousuke saw that these ‘homes’ were moveable and proved the inhabitants with shade to hold out the day. He felt incredibly sick thinking about it. Makoto didn’t even look down at them, simply moving towards the tight cluster of buildings. People had made their homes in the cliff face as well, precariously stretched above nothing but air with flimsy sticks and strips of metal, dug into the sandstone.

                “The market is in the center. The factory is on the west side,” Makoto told him, falling back so that they stood side by side. Sousuke nodded; he could see the stacks from where they were and tried to make a mental note that that direction was west. They were both broad men, tall, and the path between buildings and stalls wasn’t that big. But he found that others, people smaller and weaker, bone thin and sickly, simply scurried from their way. Makoto seemed like such a kind, sweet guy. Like he would move out of the way for some. But he didn’t. Sousuke guessed there were reasons for that.

                Better to be intimidating and in control than be weak and controlled, he supposed.

                The air was dry and scents that he had never smelled before hit his nose and he had to press the back of his hand to his bandana-covered mouth. The other alpha didn’t seem phased and so he followed suit, even as his head swam with overwhelming smells.

                “That’s the smell of decay, sickness, rot, and death,” Makoto said, “if you were wondering.”

                “It’s disgusting.”

                “You’ll get used to it.”

                Sousuke grimaced and looked around again. They were now in a labyrinth of huts and sandstone shanties, stalls and piles of debris. It was disgusting but he couldn’t stop looking. The desolate lives these people led were fascinating as well as nausea inducing.

He wished he had stopped looking though because when he looked forward once more Makoto was nowhere to be found.

                The dark-haired man stopped dead, eyes widening in panic. He could see over the sea of people and he couldn’t spot the broad shoulders of his companion. He was gone and Sousuke was stuck in the middle of a hostile, deadly city with no way to know where to go. He turned around and looked back the way he had come but he had always had a bad sense of direction and he knew he wouldn’t be able to find his way out on his own.

                So he started walking in the direction he had been heading, hoping that maybe he’d run into Makoto. The dwellings grew bigger, the pathways more crowded. He wanted to ask where the market was, but that would instantly tag him as an outsider, and he was sure that outsiders would be targeted, even if he was an alpha. He kept walking.

                Someone grabbed onto his pant leg and he looked down to see an old man missing both his legs and covered in tumorous growths staring up at him. “Strong alpha, help. You could help me, you could save me,” he croaked. “You could get me food.” Not knowing what to do, Sousuke tugged away from the man and quickened his pace, shocked and now more than a little scared.

                _This is how I die_ , he thought. He’d starve here, become one of the many people sitting on the sides, kicked or beaten down by the stronger as they walked by. He just knew it.

                A loud yell drew his attention, and Sousuke looked up to see three powerful people – a man and two women – chasing after a boy no older than 13. He looked pale and frantic. Blood stained his side, slowing him down and leaving a trail for the three to follow if they lost sight of him. He was helpless.

                “Get back here,” one of the women yelled and Sousuke realized that she was even taller than he was, shoulders broad and muscled. It was also obvious that she was alpha of the ‘pack’.

                “Can’t we just kill him?” one of her companions asked as they pushed their way through the people who hadn’t scampered out of the way. He was panting hard to try and keep up with the two females.  

                “No,” she growled at him. The only alpha female Sousuke had ever met was Gou, but Gou was still adorable, girlish, feminine. Not terrifying unless she used her Voice – which worked on both Rin _and_ himself. But this woman, this alpha, was all power. Maybe it was the holster holding a gun or maybe it was the jagged knife in her hand, streaked with blood, but he was scared of her. So was everyone else, even her two pack-mates, it seemed.

                Sousuke still wanted to do something, needed to do something. He was never good at being a bystander, especially when there was bullying involved. He realized that this didn’t count as bullying, that this was much worse and that he was out of his league and that he’d probably get hurt trying to help. But he was stubborn and wanted to help and so he stepped forward so that he blocked the path of the three people.

                And was promptly pulled out of the way by a strong hand on his arm. The three rocketed passed him, knocking people to the ground in their haste to catch up with the surprisingly fast boy.

                “What exactly are you thinking?”

                Sousuke turned to see Makoto had found him. The hold he had on his upper arm was painful, very painful and he tried to pull away from his grip. He failed miserably and Makoto turned and dragged him through the trembling people and the ruins that they called home.

                “Get _off_ ,” he grunted, finally able to pry the other alpha’s hand off his arm. The brunet rounded on him so fast that Sousuke practically walked into him and stumbled. He took a quick step backwards.

                “You would have been killed,” Makoto said, eyes shaded, no hint of that gentle smile or comforting glimmer on his face. “They would have _killed you_ and _skinned you_ and _worn you_ as a new coat. What were you _thinking_?”

                Sousuke mouthed, fishing for words. He couldn’t really comprehend what he had just been told.

                “I don’t know what your life was like, before,” Makoto said. The dark-haired alpha found that Makoto’s voice was probably the scariest he had ever experienced. Including watching the female alpha chase that helpless boy. Makoto didn’t seem angry, he wasn’t shouting or acting violently. No, his voice was deadpan, calm, even, and Sousuke recoiled. “But you’re not in that world anymore.”

                “So protecting people isn’t a thing you do in this world?” Sousuke snapped back and Makoto’s eyes narrowed.

                “No,” he said bluntly, shocking Sousuke. “If they aren’t me and mine, I don’t _care._ I _can’t_ care, don’t you get that?” He stepped closer, into Sousuke’s personal space and the other alpha backed up. He found he had nowhere to go; he walked into a crumbling wall. Makoto was so close that he could feel his breathe on his face. Makoto was a little shorter than he was but right now he felt much, _much_ taller, and he suddenly wondered if this was how Aiichirou felt all the time.

                “If you care,” Makoto said, “it will not end well for you.” He pulled away and Sousuke let out a slow, shaky breathe. “Now, keep up. We’re almost there. The market is just a little up ahead.” He smiled sweetly and turned away, leaving Sousuke to scramble after him, heart pounding hard in his chest.

                The market turned out to be nothing like what Sousuke was imagining. It was nestled up against the cliff face, a collection of makeshift stalls and lean-tos that traveled up the sandstone. Small dwellings tucked into indents in the stone were reached by rickety walkways made of scrap. Higher in the cliff larger buildings had been constructed, the size of three-story houses.

                “What are we getting?” he asked Makoto.

                “Mainly food. And then a place to sleep for the night,” the brunet alpha replied, nodding towards the horizon. Sousuke hadn’t realized how long they had been walking. Funny how time passed even when you weren’t paying attention to it. The sun was creeping lower and lower and it would be nightfall soon. “We’ll do more tomorrow.” Sousuke nodded.

                People started lighting small fires as the sun disappeared. It flickered up against the canvas and wood and scrap buildings, casting ghostly shadows that danced and twisted. He shivered. He had never experienced this before but the moment the sun went down the temperature dropped drastically. It must be the desert. Nothing to hold the heat in, he supposed.

                “Is it always this cold at night?” he asked.

                Makoto nodded. “Yes,” he said. “Although a fire and a canvas tent will do wonders. Come on, I know of a place we should be able to sleep.”

                Sousuke felt like a dog. Simply trailing after Makoto. But he mused that he had no idea where he was, what he would do or where he would go if Makoto wasn’t there. It wasn’t like he had any other choice but to follow the other alpha through the dark stalls where people were creeping out to bargain in the moon’s light. He was fine until he realized Makoto was heading towards one of those tiny walkways made of wood and carved into the cliff face. He stopped dead.

                “I am not going up that,” he said, eyes wide.

                “Suit yourself,” Makoto said. Sousuke could tell that the other alpha was just done with his shit, done with everything he was doing and exhausted. He said nothing else as he turned back around and started up the rickety pathway. It creaked and groaned but stayed stable.

                Makoto was several meters up when Sousuke finally forced himself to move. He tried to hurry but step lightly at the same time, not trusting what was under his feet. It was hard and he kept his side tightly pressed to the rock face. As he caught up to the other, he thought he caught a smile on Makoto’s lips as they passed a torch that had been lit, but he wasn’t sure.

                It became apparent that they were making their way towards a large dwelling several stories high half built into the rock face half propped up so precariously with thin beams that Sousuke was surprised it was standing. It creaked gently in the wind. Makoto didn’t blink at how dangerous that was and led the way into the building. The doors didn’t fit perfectly in the jam, but even with the draft it was warmer than outside. The air was smoky and thick. At least it wasn’t windy.

                A young woman came up to them, smiling like she knew Makoto. She was dressed in nothing but a sash around her hips that reached to the floor and a chain snug around the small of her waist, obviously there to draw attention to her figure. The brunet alpha pulled the bandana away from his face. “One of my favorites has returned to me, after so long,” she said and leaned up, pressing a kiss on Makoto’s lips gently. Her hair was brilliantly pink and pulled into a knot at the top of her head, stray curls tickling her neck. “Only here for a few days though, I suppose? Like always?”

                “Yes Mother,” the alpha replied. “It’s cold out there.”

                “I know, I know, we’ll keep you nice and warm,” she replied, “although I wish you’d stay longer…” She then turned her attention to Sousuke. The dark-haired man had been standing a little behind Makoto in shock. His mouth was hanging open and he couldn’t not stare at the mostly naked woman before him. He had never seen someone so lacking in modesty. Back in Samezuka, no one went naked except for children. It just wasn’t acceptable. But here this woman was, long limbed and strong, her breasts bare to anyone who wanted to view them. Two metal bars were pierced through her nipples.

                “Who is this, baby?” she asked Makoto. “Have you been hiding such a lovely piece from me all this time?”

                Makoto laughed softly as she walked up to Sousuke and looked him up and down. The alpha blushed, eyes wide, unsure of what to do. He couldn’t tell how old this woman was. She didn’t look any older than Makoto, but she carried an air of power. Power that shouldn’t be reckoned with. He had the creeping suspicion that she was an alpha. It was only then did it dawn on him that Makoto had called her _mother_. But the alpha had said his parents hadn’t been around. What was he playing at?

                “No Mother. He’s the, uh, newest addition? To the family,” he told her. “Him and a pair of redheaded siblings his age.”

                “Oh, you two have adopted, then?” the woman Makoto had called mother asked with a grin.

                “Adopted?” Sousuke spluttered. “What?”

                “Oh, he can speak! I thought you were a mute, darling,” she said, placing a hand on his arm. “Allow a woman to have her fun, will you? You’re a handsome alpha, aren’t you? I would _love_ to get my hands on you, but I suppose Makoto wouldn’t let me play with his toy, now would you baby?” She shot a glance over her shoulder.

                Sousuke stared over her head at the other alpha, who simply smiled. Toy? _Makoto’s_ toy? He was no one’s toy, thank you very much! He was an _alpha_ , for fuck’s sake. Weren’t others supposed to be _his_ toys? Even if he had never touched another person that way in his life… He became acutely aware of the guilt and shame that came from those thoughts. He had been taught to respect all, no matter alpha, beta, or omega.

                “Mother, come now, you know I don’t have anyone,” Makoto said, scratching the back of his head.

                She clicked her tongue. “You two still not bonded? Such a shame, you make such a cute couple…Plus, he needs to be protected. That’s why he’s not here, isn’t it? ”

                Makoto ignored her words. _What did that mean_? “Anyway. Do you have a space for us to stay for a couple nights?”

                The woman pulled away from Sousuke to look at the brunet. “Of course, baby, when have I ever not had room for my favorite alpha?” she said. “But for payment you have to see _my_ baby. He’s missing you, I’m sure. He’s got no one up there with him, he was hoping that you’d be stopping. It is full moon after all; you can stay with him.”

Makoto nodded and headed up the stairs. Sousuke moved to follow but a hand stopped him.

                “Newest addition,” she said, fixing him with a dark violet gaze. “If you have plans to hurt my babies, I will end you.” Sousuke stood frozen, shock and panic filling him. That seemed to be his constant state now. He didn’t know how to feel anything else. Besides fear. Then she smiled and tossed a strand of hair over her shoulder. “Call me Mother or Mama,” she said. “I look after all my boys and girls. Even if they don’t live here anymore. So I hope you behave.”

                And she was gone, walking away from him down the thin hallway to another door.

                “Sousuke,” Makoto called from the top of the stairs. “Come on.”

                Sousuke jumped and nodded, hurrying after the other alpha. Makoto was leading him through maze-like hallways lit by lamps burning with oil and flame. As they walked passed doors, Sousuke could hear… _sounds_. What _was_ this place? The cries and moans coming from behind the closed doors sent both a chill and a shock of heat through his body. He knew what was happening on the other side of the doors.

                Makoto stopped in front of a room with a “K” carved into the wood of the door and knocked. The door swung open a moment later to reveal a young man with pink hair and violet eyes. Just like the woman downstairs.

                “Mako,” he said with a wide grin. He was definitely younger than Makoto, might even be younger than Sousuke himself, but he couldn’t tell. Even so, he was nearly as tall as both alphas. “You did come! Too much time between full moons.”

                “I know, Kisumi,” Makoto replied with a small smile. “You know we don’t like coming back often…”

                The young man grinned back and pulled the alpha into a kiss.

 

-

 

                “Where’s Haru?” Rin asked, sitting behind his sister in an attempt to brush out her long locks. It was difficult without an actual brush, but he was making due with a comb that Haru had made out of bone. It accomplished its purpose and that’s all that mattered.

                “Ah,” she said, jumping and causing Rin to poke her with the sharp ends of the bone comb. “Uh, I think he just wanted some time alone?” She shifted and settled back down. The redheaded beta frowned at the back of her head.

                “What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked.

                “Well, it doesn’t surprise me that he needs time away from _you_ ,” she teased. “I mean what I said. Some people need time alone.”

                “I understand that part,” Rin said scowling. “But why’d you say it like a question?” He prodded her in the back of the neck with the comb and she spun around with a glare on her face, covering the back of her neck.

                _That’s where Haru’s brand is_ , Rin mused as Gou rubbed her neck. _But how do people own other people? How does that work?_

                “I don’t know, just leave him,” she said with a small huff. She tugged the comb from his fingers and went back to brushing her hair on her own. No longer trusting him, apparently. “Some people want space.”

                “Hmph,” Rin said and turned away from her. But what would they do without Haru here? Neither of them knew how to catch food, even if they did know the basic concept of cooking. Hell, Rin didn’t even know how to make a fire yet. In hindsight, not the smartest plan. At least his sister could do that. “Whatever.”

                He stood up and stretched. “I’m going to go for a swim,” he said and walked away from his sister. Gou shook her head a little as she braided her hair. Rin made his way down the path and towards the lake, shedding his shirt as he got close.

                He had just stepped into the water when he heard it.

                Panting, ragged and pained. Not coming from the camp but from a pathway leading away. A shock of fear washed through him. Had someone found their hiding place? Was it Haru? Was he hurt?

                Grabbing his shirt and tugging it on, Rin made his way down the path, following the sounds. It sounded like Haru. But he sounded miserable. Sick, weak, hurting, even. The tunnel was getting smaller and smaller and eventually he had to crouch down. In a small hollow away from the winding path, he found Haru lying on his side, forehead pressed against the cool stone of the cavern wall.

                “Haru!” he said startled and scrambled into the space, towards the man. Haru jerked violently and lifted his head to look over his shoulder. Rin could see a thin sheen of sweat covering his forehead. It was then that a scent hit him. He couldn’t make head nor tails of it, couldn’t figure out what it was besides the fact that it was coming from Haru. He looked so sick!

                “You don’t look good, are you okay?” he asked and shuffled closer, pressing his hand against Haru’s forehead. “You’re really hot.”

                “’m fine,” Haru mumbled. He had flinched away from his touch and Rin pulled his hand back. “I’ll be fine. Leave me alone.” He curled in on himself, rolling further into the corner. Rin frowned and grabbed ahold of his arm, forcing him to roll over.

                The dark-haired man let out a small yelp as he was pulled onto his back.

                Rin pulled back as if he were electrocuted. “W-what.”

                “Rin, just l-leave me alone,” Haru hissed. His face was flushed crimson, pupils blown wide, lips slick with saliva. And he was hard, very hard, straining against his pants. Rin scooted back, falling onto his ass. “Just go.”

                “Haru?”

                “You can’t be that sheltered!” Haru spat out, angrier than Rin had ever seen in the two weeks he had known him. “You must know what this is!” The man sat up and pulled his legs close to his chest tight, breathless.

                “Is this…are you…are you an…omega?” Rin asked. All of the biology lessons came flooding back to him and told him one thing: Haru was an omega and he was in heat. Gou knew, somehow. That was why Makoto was gone, that was why he had taken Sousuke with him. It wasn’t because they needed supplies, it was because they didn’t want any alphas, especially an alpha they barely knew, to be around an omega in heat.

                “What does it look like?” Haru hissed, eyes closed tightly. “What else would I be?”

                Rin sat there in a daze, staring open mouthed at the omega before him. What was he supposed to do? Should he go get Gou? Should he stay here? Should he leave Haru alone? He remembered learning that heats could last between three and eight days, depending on the omega and their situation. How long did Haru’s heat last? Would he stay all alone the entire time?

                Haru pressed his forehead against his knees. “Just go away, Rin,” he mumbled. He was trembling gently, Rin could see from where he sat.

                The redhead stared for another long moment before shifting closer. He reached out and grabbed hold of his arm. Haru’s head shot up to look at him, panic and desperation panted all across his beautiful face.

                “No,” he said. “What…what can I do to help?”

                Haru blinked long and slow at him, mouth open in shock. “I…” he stopped talking, choking on his words, then looked away, his cheeks turning even redder. If that was possible. “Just…hold me?”

                The words were almost too quiet and Rin barely caught them. He paused then nodded and moved close to him, opening his arms awkwardly. Haru moved immediately into them, pressing himself against the redheaded beta. Rin moved his legs so that the omega could more comfortably fit against him and wrapped his arms around him.

                The scent wasn’t overpowering. It wasn’t overly arousing or unbearable. It was nice, pleasant…almost calming. He pressed his nose into Haru’s hair and inhaled. It made him feel a little floaty, a little more sensitive, and _needed_. He had never felt like this before.

                The omega pressed his cheek against Rin’s shoulder, letting out a soft huff of frustration and arousal, holding onto Rin’s shirt limply.

                The beta remembered something he had learned, about the sensitive glands omegas had. Well, he had them too, but they weren’t as sensitive as his. A book had said that sometimes they could be used to comfort or calm down an omega. He didn’t know if it was true, didn’t know if it would make things better or worse, but he thought he’d give it a try anyway.

                So he gently ran his hand up Haru’s back and experimentally rubbed under the omega’s jaw. It felt swollen and hot to the touch, but the moment his fingers came into contact with it Haru let out a gasp of relief and practically melted against him.

                “Is…is that okay?” Rin asked nervously as he rubbed gentle circles on Haru’s jaw.

                “Is good,” he replied into his shoulder, now completely limp. “Is good…tha…nks.”

                Every so often Haru would shift, moving his head to the opposite side or wrapping his arms around his waist. He’d make soft little cooing sounds into Rin’s neck and the redhead was very glad Haru didn’t see his face because he was blushing widely. He wasn’t overly aroused, but this was…very intimate. In a whole other level he hadn’t known existed.

                It took him some time to realize Haru had fallen asleep against him. Rin was hungry and sore and he was getting a cramp in his leg, but he didn’t want to move. Didn’t want to wake Haru. The omega looked so much better than when he had first found him, peaceful and calm.

                So he continued to stroke Haru’s jaw and neck in rhythmic motions, focusing on how soft the omega’s hair was against his cheek and how warm he felt against his body.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HOPE I CAN WRITE A NEW CHAPTER SOON. I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IS GONNA HAPPEN NEXT. :DDD


	5. They Call it the House of the Risin' Sun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haru unravels an unexpected and unbelievable truth about Rin. Sousuke's culture shock escalates and it's mostly fault of a pink-haired young man named Kisumi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHAT IS THIS WHAT AM I DOING. I don't actually know, but I actually do have some ideas~ I'm still getting super excited that I've been able to post on this fic regularly. This hasn't happened in a long time!!!!   
> I hope you enjoy.
> 
> Title chapter inspired by lyrics from House of the Risin' Sun by The Animals

                Kou went looking for them when she noticed the sun had gone down. It had been hours, she was sure, since her brother had disappeared in search of the dark haired omega. But they needed to eat, it didn’t matter if Haruka was in heat. They needed to eat something and drink water.

                So she pushed up her sleeves, picked up several containers of water and the portions of food for the two men and headed away from camp.

                It wasn’t hard to track them. The omega’s scent hung heavily in the air and only grew stronger as she walked passed the lake. It was strong, it was overpowering, but all it did was make her head ache. She knew that it should make her feel more. She knew that the scent of an omega in heat should make her uncontrollable, unstoppable. It didn’t matter that Haru was male and she was female, she should feel the need to claim him.

                That’s what an alpha felt, after all.

                But she didn’t. She felt the gentle urge to protect, but that wasn’t anything new. She had always wanted to protect, especially her brother and Sousuke who both got themselves into trouble easily. What was wrong with her?

                She crouched down and looked into a small cave. Heat scent hung heavily in the air and in the soft glow of the bioluminescent moss she saw the two males against the wall. Kou shook her head. They were both asleep. Haruka was tucked in against Rin, flushed red and breathing heavily; Rin’s arms were around the omega loosely, fingers still brushing Haru’s neck.

                She cleared her throat and sat down a few paces from them with a loud clatter.

                Haruka groaned and rolled away from Rin, pressing into the rock face so that he didn’t have to touch the beta. The redhead jerked awake violently.

                “Go away,” the omega whined softly into the stone.

                “You both need to eat!” Kou exclaimed. “And have some water.”

                Her brother blinked at her dumbly for several long seconds then stared. “Wait. Wait. Just _wait_ one fucking moment!” he spluttered. “Gou, you can’t be here!” Kou rolled her eyes and held out the containers of water to them.

                The omega reached out for one immediately and for a moment Kou wondered if she had accidently used the Voice. She made a mental note to keep that in check. She knew she had a habit of using it when she got frustrated, especially with her brother, and so it may have slipped out. And of course it would’ve had a strong effect on the dark-haired man.

                “I’m fine, Rin,” Kou said and shook the container of water she was holding out at him in his face, forcing the beta to take it from her. She glared at him until he took several long swigs. “…It…doesn’t affect me.”

                Haruka lowered the water to stare at her in shock. There was relief in those eyes, too, she was sure. Some tension left his body and he went back to nursing his water, legs pulled up close to his chest. He looked very miserable.

                “Wait what?” Rin asked and stared blankly at his sister.

                Kou shrugged her thin shoulders. “It’s strong, really strong,” she said, blinking quickly. “But. I don’t know, it doesn’t really…make me feel anything?”

                Her brother squinted at her. “Are you sure you’re an alpha?” he asked. Kou shot him a look. “Okay, okay. Maybe it’s cause you’re a girl?”

                “That shouldn’t matter.”

                The two redheaded siblings turned to look at the omega. He looked up over his water, deep blue gaze flickering between the two. “Sex doesn’t matter,” he mumbled. “Trust me.”

                “What—”

                “It’s just me then,” Kou cut her brother off sharply, knowing that the idiot was going to ask something tactless or rude or crass. Wasn’t it obvious to him that Haruka felt uncomfortable? Probably not, she realized.

                Rin scratched the back of his head, frowning in confusion. He drank some water to give himself something to do and Kou set out the food she had brought for them. It was simple and not much, consisting of several of the cavern mushrooms Haruka had showed her about and the rest of a cooked cave fish, but it was still food.

                Kou focused on her hands when she heard the omega let out a soft whimpered groan. Even if it didn’t seem to affect her physically – maybe she was broken? – she felt bad and embarrassed that she was there, right there. In Samezuka, omegas stayed at home during heat cycles. There were supplements that helped lessen the effects, too. But out here…there was nothing. Omegas had to handle it themselves. And she wasn’t as innocent as her brother and Sousuke probably thought. She had talked to Makoto more than either of them in the two plus weeks they’d been here. Another alpha, after all. Older than she was, used to this world, with more experience she might need or put to use.

                She had told him she knew Haruka was an omega. He made her swear she wouldn’t tell Rin or Sousuke and the look in his eyes made her agree immediately. She knew it was for the omega’s safety. She didn’t know how Sousuke would act around an omega, after all. Rin, he wasn’t as much of a problem. But.

                Omegas had it hard in this world. She shuddered at the thought, remembering some of the things Makoto had told her about, the dangers of being an omega, especially one in heat. She hadn’t slept for two days after those horrible images had been painted in her mind.

                So she’d take care of Haruka, if she could, and keep Rin from being dumb.

                “I want to go swimming,” the omega mumbled and, without eating, crawled from the small space away from the siblings. Kou kept her eyes fixed on the plate of food until he had disappeared from view and looked up at Rin.

                “You knew.”

                “Yes,” she replied. “Eat something, we’ll get him to eat after he’s cleaned up.”

 

-

 

                _Both Sousuke and Rin were sick. It was there fault, they shouldn’t have been playing out in the rain so long. But now they were both whiny and pathetic, and with her mother out, Kou was stuck taking care of the two older boys._

_Rin and Sousuke were piled under a bunch of blankets in the living room, snuggled deep within piles of pillows and several stuffed animals her brother had demanded she bring out. He was such a whiny brat. Many boys were, at 12. He was even whinier when he was sick, and both he and his best friend were sniffling and sneezing. Kou didn’t want to get sick! She made them wear masks so they wouldn’t cough on her._

_Kou brought them both bowls of soup and cups of tea as the rain beat down against the windows. She hoped mom would be home soon. She wanted to go spend time with **her** friends, not look after her dumb brother and practically brother. _

_“Throw down for who gets which soup!” Rin exclaimed upon seeing that one had more meat in it than the other. His voice was wheezy and pathetic and Kou rolled her eyes, standing in front of them. Waiting for them to figure out which they wanted. Sousuke even looked exasperated and he was usually down for Rin’s stuff. He was obviously tired and not in the mood. But he did it anyway._

_Rin won. Rin always won somehow. They took the bowls of soup._

_“I wanna go visit Chigusa,” Kou said and put her hands on her hips. “Will you guys be okay without me?”_

_“You’re supposed to look after us,” Rin whined._

_“We’re fine,” Sousuke said as he sipped at his soup. “Shut up Rin, you’re such a baby.”_

_Rin pouted at him and snuggled deeper into his blankets, holding his soup close. “…Fine, go hang out with your girly friends. I don’t need you anyway.”_

_Kou glared at him and stomped from the room, annoyed. He could be such a needy brat sometimes! Even though she was younger, she always had to look after him. **She** was the mature one. _

_But she pushed that away from her thoughts. She wanted to go visit her best friend. The brunet girl was just a couple months older than Kou was. And she was the first one in their class who had presented. Chigusa’s family hadn’t been surprised, apparently all of them had been early bloomers. As was customary, they told those close but it wasn’t necessary to tell others._

_Kou wanted to see how she was doing. Although she had presented as just a beta, that first little bit was a pain for anyone. As the redheaded girl pulled on her galoshes and raincoat, she wondered when she would present and what she would present as._

_Probably a beta, like her mother._

-

 

                _Kou was sick for a week when she presented. After the third day, their doctor told a miserable 14-year-old Kou and Ms. Matsuoka that the girl had presented as an alpha. She had simply sat in her chair, staring at the doctor with shocked eyes. Her, an alpha? A girl, an alpha? She knew it was **possible** , but she had never imagined that would happen. _

_Her father had been an alpha. But she shouldn’t be an alpha! Kou was small and feminine and dainty, her brother should be the one who presented as alpha (he still hadn’t presented yet and he was furious when he found out she not only presented before him but presented alpha). She had to endure his teasing all through her bout of sickness, telling her she was a baby and she needed to grow up._

_When Rin presented four months later as a beta, he refused to get out of bed for a week and a half and made their mother and Kou do everything for him. He was such a baby._

 

-

 

                The pink haired young man was named Kisumi, Sousuke found out. And the woman downstairs was in fact his mother; the alpha hadn’t doubted for a second. He had never seen that shade of hair in his life.

                “Oh trust me, baby,” Kisumi replied when he asked, winking suggestively. “It’s all natural. Do you wanna make sure?” When the alpha stared at him blankly, the young man giggled and continued. “Well, I can show you that the carpet matches the drapes.”

                Makoto and Kisumi had laughed for a good ten minutes straight at his reaction, once realization had dawned on Sousuke and he had lit up so brightly he felt like his face was actually going to melt off. It took them a while to calm down and it took him a long time to be able to look at either of them.

                It took Sousuke about half an hour to find out that Kisumi was a wicked tease and was even able to get Makoto to blush. Meaning Sousuke was crimson, because he had stuck his hands down the brunet alpha’s pants. Makoto shook him off though and stood up, fixing his pants as he did so.

                “I’ll go get us some dinner,” he said.

                Sousuke panicked. He was going to leave him here? Alone? With the pink haired man who looked like he could actually _eat_ him? But Makoto just met his eye and smiled, tilting his head to the side.

                “You’ll be fine. And I’m sure you’re hungry,” he said and left the room, closing it carefully behind him. Sousuke sat on the side of the bed uncomfortably, looking everywhere around the room so that he wouldn’t have to look at the pink-haired man before him.

                He heard a soft chuckle and turned against his better judgment.

                “Calm down,” Kisumi said, his tone not quite as teasing as before. He seemed a bit more relaxed. “You’re just spending the night. No one’s gonna do anything to you unless you want them to.” He stretched out on the blankets and the dark-haired alpha couldn’t help but watch as his muscles slid smoothly under his pale skin.

                Sousuke cleared his throat. “What is this place?”

                Kisumi raised one pink eyebrow and rolled onto his stomach so he could easily see the alpha. “Where _did_ Mako unearth you? You’re so…pure,” he hummed. “It’s a whore house, honey. Plain and simple.”

                When Sousuke didn’t react – _whore house? What does that even mean?_  - Kisumi giggled softly. “You’re just making me want to do so many things to you. People come here to fuck. They pay us to have sex with them. Give them what they need in a world like this. Enough to keep going, sometimes.”

                Sousuke opened his mouth but no words came out so he closed it again. He had never heard of such a thing, but it made sense with the sounds he had heard while walking down the hallway. So…how did Makoto know them? Was he a patron? Or was he an old…employee? Whore? What? He clenched his teeth as his thoughts reeled out of control.

                “Anyhow,” the man before him said. He had a scar on his lower back, glistening white. A small B was underneath the main symbol of the brand. “Makoto will be gone for a while, if you need something to tide you over until he gets back just tell me.”

                “Is he getting food down in the market?”

                “No, honey, just the kitchens. Two stories down. But I’m sure he’ll get stopped on the way. I’m not the only one who misses that beautiful piece of ass,” Kisumi told him. “He’ll be back though, don’t worry. And I won’t eat you, so you can relax.” He smiled up at Sousuke. “Unless, of course, you want me to.” He winked.

                Sousuke choked.

               

-

 

                Rin and Gou had followed the omega from the small cave, the beta now carrying the food and empty water containers. He peered at his sister, confused and concerned. He didn’t understand why Haru didn’t have any effect on her whatsoever. Of course, part of him was extremely grateful, but another part was worried about her. The young woman seemed fine. But was there something… _wrong_ with her? Was she really an alpha?

                He didn’t voice his concerns, knowing that she would simply shrug him off or tell him he was worrying too much. So they backtracked down to the lake.

                Haru’s clothes had been dropped into one big heap near the water’s edge. Omega scent hung heavily on them, even Rin could smell it. He knew enough about biology and Sex Ed to realize that his clothes, his pants, would be covered in slick. He flushed lightly when that thought crossed his mind. They would need to rinse them out at the very least. He looked around, trying to spot the dark-haired man, but couldn’t find him immediately. He looked at his sister.

                “I can still smell him,” she said as she rolled up her pant legs and took the clothes into the water to wash. Obviously she had thought the same thing as he did. This made him feel that, if they were still back in Samezuka, she could have become a doctor. She was viewing things in a straightforward kind of way, not allowing herself to think about it too much. “He’s here somewhere. You’re so oblivious.”

                Rin scowled at her and turned away. He wanted to find Haru, make sure he was okay. That he didn’t drown or anything. He doubted that would happen. But still. He wanted to know where he was, this whole thing made him incredibly worried and on edge.

                He didn’t have to swim far. Still in his pants, he drifted over to the omega where he was floating, hidden behind some rocks. He looked much better than he had and maybe that was just the water but it allowed Rin to relax.

                “Feeling better?”

                “Hn,” Haru replied and pulled his knees to his chest, bobbing under the water. Rin realized he was completely naked – of course he was, he had seen the pile of clothes – and that he was still flushed. His pink skin made his scars stand out more and Rin winced. He cleared his expression when the omega looked at him again.

                He chewed at his lip with his sharp teeth, not knowing what to do.

                “Rin,” Haru said softly. His voice was a little husky, filled with need. Need that Rin couldn’t properly fill – not that he wanted to…right? No, just thinking about it made him uncomfortable. The redhead met those bright blue eyes. “You’re not a beta.”

                “What?” Rin asked stupidly as he tread water. He had nearly swallowed water when Haru had spoken. He didn’t understand. At 15, the doctor had proclaimed him a full on beta, no doubt about it. To his annoyance, of course, since his baby sister presented before him and presented as alpha.

                “You’re not a beta,” he repeated and the look on Haru’s face conveyed that he was just as confused as Rin felt. What was Haru even saying? Of course he was a beta. There was no way in _hell_ he was an alpha.

                “What am I?”

                Haru shook his head feverishly. “Not beta. Not alpha. Not omega,” he mumbled and swam close. Rin didn’t move, red eyes widening even further when the omega stopped right in front of him.

                “What are you talking about?”

                Haru leaned close, catching hold of Rin’s pants. The beta could feel the constant wave from the dark-haired man’s easy legs-only tread. The redhead could feel the heat radiating from the omega’s body.

                “You’re _weird_ ,” he answered and pressed his nose into Rin’s neck. Like the first time they had met, hands covered in Sousuke’s blood. At that time, Haru had been looking for Gou. But this was completely different. Rin could do nothing as he felt the omega press closer but tread water, brain completely blank.

                “Thanks,” he said, attempting sarcasm.

                “Never felt someone like you before,” he whispered and pulled away to stare at Rin. Rin stared back.

                “What, so you can tell who’s an omega and shit? How does that work?” Rin asked, clearing his throat as he beat at the water, trying his hardest to stay afloat and process what the strange omega was saying.

                Haru nodded. “Don’t know why,” he mumbled. “I can though. And you confuse me.”

                Rin swallowed. “Well, is…is my sister an alpha?”

                Haru nodded again. “Full alpha,” he said. He was drifting again, back towards the cave wall. Rin followed and found that they could now touch the ground. Yet the omega kept on floating, pale limbs practically glowing in the dim light created by the glow worms on the ceiling.

                “So I’m the weird one,” Rin said. He was trying for sarcasm again. Or maybe humor. Either way, both of them failed him and he found himself without any coherent thought again. Haru had moved close to him. At least now he didn’t have to tread water.

                “It’s okay,” the omega mumbled. “You make me feel…better.”

                “What?”

                “It’s not as unbearable,” Haru mumbled and rested his cheek on Rin’s shoulder, breathing against the beta’s neck. “Stay with me.”

                Rin felt his arms going around the omega without conscious thought. Hot skin pressed against his own, but it was bearable, comforting, like before. He had no reason to say no to Haru, because he wanted to stay as well. He wanted to stay, _needed_ to stay.

 

-

 

                They stayed like that for a while, until Rin’s sister called to them, annoyance filling every syllable of her voice. “You need to eat, Haruka!” she said. Haru scowled, face still pressed into Rin’s neck. He knew he had to, but he didn’t want to move.

                For the first heat ever, he felt like he could deal with it. Something about Rin triggered something in him, that calmed everything down. He didn’t ache as much. He wasn’t quite as hot. It was as if his symptoms were lessening. Would they disappear completely, if he stayed close to the redheaded not-beta?

                “She’s gonna yell again,” Rin said and pulled Haru away with a gentle push. “You do need to eat.”

                Haru made a face but nodded and followed the redhead back to shore where Gou had lain out the omega’s clothes to dry. Keeping her gaze fixed on his, she handed him the food then left the two. He could see a light blush on her cheeks, and he figured it was because he was still naked.

                He didn’t care though. It was more comfortable this way. He settled down on the rock and slowly ate. Rin settled down beside him and gazed out at the lake.

                Haru watched him. Rin was beautiful. He felt he could watch him for long stretches at a time and not become bored. The way his soft hair fell across his face, the sharp curve of his jaw and nose.

                He finished eating and set the tin aside, picking up his still damp pants and shimmying them on. He knew that Rin was now watching him but he ignored it, focusing instead on the clammy feel of his pants. It felt good. It soothed some of the burning heat he felt.

 

-

 

                It took Makoto an hour and a half to return with food for Sousuke and himself. He had made it to the kitchen but was then ambushed by Mother. Of course, he was happy to oblige, but he did have to remind her that he was hungry (for food!) and Sousuke was probably starving. And plus, he didn’t want to leave the town dweller alone for too long. He had no clue what he’d get up to.

                It turned out that he’d get up to nothing. When the alpha made it back to the room, he found that Sousuke had fallen asleep on Kisumi’s bed and the pink-haired beta was sprawled on his nest of blankets and pillows on the floor, dozing. He chuckled softly, which woke the beta. The younger man sat up and stretched like a cat. Makoto watched him carefully, admiring his body.

                He’d have to partake in that body, he knew it. Even if he hadn’t wanted to, Kisu wouldn’t have let him go without doing so. But he did want to. So.

                “How long has he been asleep?” he asked as he sat down next to the bed. He set the plate of food for Sousuke on the small table before starting on his own. Kisumi crawled over to him.

                “He fell asleep fifteen minutes after you left. What took you so long?” he asked, a soft whine in his voice. Makoto smiled and continued to eat.

                “Your mother,” he said and the beta just snorted and slid onto his lap, resting his arms on Makoto’s shoulders.

                “She always gets there first,” Kisumi replied with a pout. The alpha chuckled softly.

                “Kisu, I’m hungry and trying to eat, let me eat,” Makoto whined, giving the beta a gentle push. The pink-haired man didn’t move, only grinning.

                “I’m hungry too,” he murmured, pressing closer to the alpha’s chest and nibbling at his ear. Makoto groaned softly.

                “You’re going to have to wait,” the alpha said and pushed Kisumi off his lap forcefully. The beta pouted and rolled onto the pillows in the corner of the room.

                “I guess I’ll just have to start without you,” Kisumi said and stretched out. Makoto watched as he let those skilled fingers ran down his own chest. Well, the brunet alpha would never say no to dinner and a show. Kisumi tweaked his nipples, biting his lip in the way he knew the older man liked.

                Makoto continued to eat, green eyes not leaving the man before him.

He should probably wake up Sousuke…He needed to eat. But he also wanted Kisumi all to himself for a while. But could they be quiet enough so that they didn’t wake the other alpha?

                The beta dragged his fingers down his chest and danced, teasingly, across the rim of his shorts. Makoto could feel heat gathering down in his groin as Kisumi continued. He didn’t undress just yet but he had moved to palming himself through the thin material he wore. He let out a soft moan, arching his back.

                “Mako,” he whined. “Finish eating. Don’t you want to eat _me_?”

                “I’m almost done,” the alpha replied, and it was true, he was. So the beta continued to touch and caress himself, obviously growing more desperate. His erection was now straining against his shorts. Makoto knew that he liked to be watched, he knew that this turned him on. And he also knew that he’d get impatient and he really would start without him.

                So he set his plate down and crawled over to the beta. He pushed Kisumi onto his back, capturing his active hands and pinning them over his head. “Fine,” he murmured. He leaned down and kissed the pink-haired man deeply. Kisumi arched his back, rocking his hips up into Makoto’s.

                Transferring Kisumi’s wrists to one hand, Makoto danced his fingers down the beta’s arm before grabbing at those pink locks tightly. The younger man let out a soft keen as the alpha dragged his head back forcefully, exposing his neck. He loved the noises he could draw from the beta, they were some of his favorite noises. They were even better when he pressed his teeth into Kisumi’s neck.

                So much for quiet.

                A startled gasp and a loud thud alerted him and Kisumi to the awakened state of Sousuke. Makoto raised his head, still pinning Kisumi down on the ground and they both looked over at the dark haired alpha.

                It was obvious that he had seen what was going on not three feet from him and in his surprise rolled off the bed. Now he was sitting up against it, staring at the two of them. Makoto figured he didn’t really know how to react because his face was rather blank, mouth half open.

                Makoto pulled himself off Kisumi with a small ‘hmph’, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. Kisumi sat up, flushed all over and still achingly hard. “Busted,” he huffed. “Sou, baby, you just cock-blocked us.”

                Sousuke looked away, covering his mouth as his face lit up brightly. Again. He needed to toughen up quick or else he’d definitely get himself into trouble.

                “I got you dinner,” Makoto said, nodding towards the plate of food. Sousuke picked it up wordlessly. He stared down at it as he started to eat.

                “You enjoy your meal,” Kisumi said as he stood up. Makoto eyed him. His ass was very close to eye level and the alpha was still very turned on. “I’ll give you some peace and quiet.” And with that, he sauntered to the door of his room and left.

                “I’ll, uh…” Sousuke started, still not looking up. “I’ll be fine if…you know…you want to, like, join him, or…whatever.”

                Makoto watched him carefully then smiled sweetly. “You’re very kind, Sousuke,” he said and got up as well. “Get some rest. We’ll be starting pretty early in the morning tomorrow. I don’t want to leave the others for too long.”

                The last thing the brunet alpha saw was Sousuke eating with a shocked expression on his face. He looked exhausted and it wasn’t surprising. He and the two red headed siblings still weren’t used to this. Makoto could easily function on only a couple hours of sleep, and sometimes that was all he could get. And that was okay. If it meant he could keep Haru safe, then that was that.

                Kisumi was leaning against the wall near the door waiting for him.

                “Can we continue?” he asked, walking close and nuzzling up against Makoto.

                “Yes,” Makoto replied with a groan as Kisumi rocked hard against him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *squawks and prances off to do horrible things to all the characters*


	6. It's Been the Ruin of Many a Poor Boy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sousuke finds out something about Makoto that sends the two alphas, along with the pink-haired beta Kisumi, fleeing from the citadel. Haruka starts remembering things from a life before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CHAPTER CHAPTER CHAPTER  
> with me making more Omega verse shit up!

_The land stretched out before him from where he sat on the sandstone windowsill. The moon was out, nearly full, only a couple days left. It lit up the sands and the crowded city below and reflected off the harsh metal of the factories. It did nothing to penetrate the thick smoke that always belched from the stacks._

_Haru looked straight down. Many meters down sprawled the city, the dangerous and sickening city. And he was up here, ‘safe’, in the Sanctuary. Which was good, the omega supposed. As the moon fattened, his heat approached. And when his heat got here…well…he preferred up here._

_Oh how he longed to throw himself from the window. He would be free. He didn’t really believe in an afterlife, nothing awaited him, and that was a comforting thought._

_But no._

_Makoto. He couldn’t leave Makoto. Makoto was still out there. And the others; the others here at the Sanctuary, in the chambers, he wouldn’t leave them either. Not if he could help it. He pretended he didn’t care but it was a lie. And he couldn’t leave Makoto alone in this world. He needed to look after the alpha, even if he was far from him right now._

_He turned and got up, legs shaky and uneven. His body was sore and everything ached._

_On trembling feet, he walked across the chambers and through the ornately carved doorway leading into the baths. Hot springs. They came from deep in the earth and naturally heated to near scalding temperatures. The walls of the bathing chambers were smooth with minerals and the air was steamy._

_Immediately a bath slave was at his side, washcloth in hand._

_The Daimyo liked his property to be properly taken care of, of course. Smooth skin, yielding flesh that healed quickly so that new marks could be seen all the clearer. Haru allowed the slave to undress him before he stepped into the baths, sinking up to his neck. He, himself, was no better than a slave; he had been lucky (was it good luck or was it bad luck?) to catch the Daimyo’s eye._

_The hot, mineral enriched waters seeped into his sore muscles and aching hips, lessening some of his pain. He supposed, he thought – as he sank even lower into the water – that drowning wouldn’t be successful. The bath slave would pull him out before any damage could be done. But it didn’t stop him from slipping under the surface, eyes closed against the heat._

_The omega stayed under until his lungs screamed for air. He kept himself under the surface, away from the world, until instinct took over and he was gasping for air._

 

Haru’s eyes opened wide, his breathe stuck in his throat. He cursed the vivid dreaming many omega had. The ability to dream of events exactly how it happened, down to the feeling, down to the color and smell and sound. _The hurt._  When he sucked in a deep breathe, his lungs ached and he had to steady his air intake.

He was in the cave. Of course he was. He wasn’t _there_ , he had gotten away from all of that. He blinked, clearing his vision and trying to sharpen his sleep addled brain. A field of deep crimson locks filled his vision and it took him several long moments to realize that he was staring at the back of Rin’s head.

Haru slowly pulled himself away from the not-beta and stretched out the aches in his back. He felt phantom soreness, a pain that wasn’t really there but that he had been so familiar with before.

So he got to his feet and carefully stretched out every muscle he knew; slowly the feeling disappeared. Then he walked to the packs and pulled from one of the bags a small, very battered book. It was being held together by a thick piece of twine and carefully Haru untied it, letting it fall open on his lap.

The words in the book he knew by heart. He didn’t know how many times he had read it, yet it still offered him comfort. Talk of a faraway place, salty water and smooth, soft sand. Cool breezes, fresh air… a far off world out of his reach, probably out of everyone’s reach. But when he allowed himself to sink into the pages of the book, he could imagine how it might be to live in a place such as that.

So he focused hard on the faded words on those fragile pages, ignoring the ache deep within him. An ache that was so much less because of Rin, but still there, still clawing at him from the insides.

_Let the waves distract me_ , he thought to himself and curled up against the wall, book balanced on his knees.

-

 

Sousuke hadn’t realized just how large the citadel was until he opened the windows of Kisumi’s room in the early morning. It spread out for many kilometers, the larger of the buildings hugging the cliffs. He leaned over the sill to look straight down and regretted it almost immediately. Pulling back swiftly, he contented himself with gazing out across the shambles that was a city.

To the west were the factories. Large metal structures almost as large as the rest of the citadel combined. Smoke belched from the stacks and drifted in the light, already hot breeze. He could smell it from here. The smell of burning chemicals made him gag and he closed the shutters.

They’d be traveling down into the city to gather needed supplies and this thought caused his stomach to twist. He’d woken up on his own before the sun broke the horizon and stared around in intense disorientation for five minutes until he remembered where he was. He got up, wincing at the ache deep within his shoulder, and looked around.

On the nest of blankets and pillows populating one corner of the room lay Makoto and Kisumi. The pink-haired beta was still asleep – completely naked – with his face hidden in the brunet alpha’s chest. Sousuke couldn’t tell if the other alpha was asleep or not because his back was to him, but he was naked as well, telling the dark-haired young man exactly what had happened after he had fallen back to sleep. But for the first time he saw the entire expanse of tanned skin and muscle of the alpha’s back.

The scars on his shoulders Sousuke had already seen extended down his back. He didn’t know how they had been made. They were raised and pale, shining in the dull light filtering through the shudders. And there, low on his back close to his spine, was a circular brand.

Sousuke had caught sight of a similar thing on the back of Haruka’s neck. They were very similar in design, but Makoto had an _A_ burned in beneath it, where Haruka had an _O_. And then the alpha was rolling over onto his back, stretching enough to pop joints, and the raven-haired alpha looked away, pretending he hadn’t seen.

 

The day was unbearably hot. Sousuke was sweating profusely under his many layers but he knew that he was better off with them on. The protection from the sun it offered him was worth suffering through the suffocating and cushioned heat around him, though. Even if he was boiling. He was not used to this. Not in the slightest. It never got this hot out when he lived in Samezuka.

He had to remind himself that that wasn’t his world anymore. Samezuka didn’t exist. This was reality now. At least he wasn’t alone; that made things slightly more bearable.

Makoto didn’t seemed to be as bothered by the heat as Sousuke was. He supposed he was used to it, the beating sun and the dry air. This had been his life since he was born. He kept close to the other alpha, determined to not lose him this time. He didn’t want a repeat of the previous day. What would have happened if Makoto hadn’t found him when he did? Stopped him from doing something so incredibly foolish? Would he be dead?

But as he followed the older alpha, he couldn’t stop himself from looking at the scars on Makoto’s shoulders. Every so often, he’d catch a questioning glance from the other man, thrown over his shoulder and Sousuke made sure to avert his eyes. He wanted to ask but he didn’t know if he wanted to know. He was sure Makoto could tell he was curious about _something_ , even if he hadn’t picked up on exactly what it was.

Sousuke had to drag his eyes away as they reached the market, bustling with people. Weak and sickly people hung around the edges, begging and grabbing at those entering or leaving. Makoto ignored them and so did Sousuke, even as a young child reached out to him with pleading, dull eyes. Instead, he kept his eyes focused forward, jaw clenched hard. His heart ached.

Stall owners shouted about their wares. People weaved past each other, giving men and women heavy with battle scars and black paint covering their faces a wide breadth. Sousuke looked at them curiously.

“Keep an eye on them,” Makoto murmured through his bandana and Sousuke saw those brilliantly green eyes flicker over to a small group of the men and women. “Don’t interact with them.”

Sousuke nodded and chanced another glance at them. They looked exactly like the group that had been chasing that kid the day before. Dressed so similar, arms and faces smeared with grease, armed to the teeth.

“Who are they?” he asked the other alpha as they paused beside a stall carrying dried meat. Nervously he tugged his bandana a little higher up his face.

“O-hime,” the brunet replied in a low voice. “The women. The men are just bodies. Betas.”

“O-hime?” the dark-haired alpha repeated. He had never seen someone _so_ unlike a princess in his life, and although all that he had to go off of was books that had survived It, he swore they weren’t supposed to be like _that_.

Makoto handed something over to the stall-owner and received a large bag of the cured meat in return. He slipped it into his satchel and motioned to for them to keep moving.

“Daughters of the Daimyo,” Makoto explained quietly. Sousuke had to strain to hear him through the bustle of the crowds pressing in against them. The cloth obscuring the brunet’s mouth muffled his words even more. And again, others often scrambled from their path, not quite as hastily as they did before the O-hime, but still offering up the space to walk. “Incredibly strong female alphas. They keep an eye on the Daimyo’s people. Make sure no one gets any…ideas.”

Sousuke guessed that the Daimyo must be the one in charge. Daimyo’s were feudal lords from ancient history. Maybe life was very similar to that time. Maybe they had reverted, moved back in history. Where the ones in control were the ones who were strongest. “We saw one yesterday,” he commented.

“Yes we did,” Makoto said and even though he couldn’t see the alpha’s mouth it looked like he was smiling. Was it pitying? Or a real, genuine smile? Sousuke was starting to realize that he couldn’t tell the difference. If there was a difference.

“How many are there?”

“There were about fifty several moons ago but it’s probably increased. It fluctuates,” Makoto replied. He stuck out his arm and grabbed Sousuke’s sleeve. He stopped abruptly and together they stood aside as the O-hime, with her group of betas, pushed through the crowd. Makoto’s words caused Sousuke to splutter, blinking swiftly in confusion. _At least fifty_? How could one man have that many children? How was that even possible?

Makoto led him through the market, stopping every so often to get this or that. It seemed to be such a random assortment of things but he was sure the other alpha knew what he was doing. They must need these things, for various reasons. For survival.

The sun had crept halfway across the sky before they stopped in the shade of a crumbling building to drink some water. The bag hanging from Sousuke’s good shoulder was heavy with food and clothing. Clothing for him and Rin and Gou, he realized. Real clothes.

He wondered how the other three were doing back at the cave. He longed for the cool darkness that the caverns offered, with just the gentlest light caused by that strange glowing moss. And sinking into the cool, crisp water of the lake. He definitely was planning on dunking himself the moment they returned.

Makoto was sitting very still on the broken wall, staring up past the shanty buildings and shacks, up past the winding paths built into the sandstone cliffs and the small buildings clinging precariously to the stone. Sousuke looked up as well and saw what he was staring at.

Something was carved deep into the stone high above them. They looked like windows. Platforms, like balconies, were visible, and bright red strips of cloth hung from them, twisting and flowing in the hot wind. Sousuke turned to look at his companion.

“That’s the Sanctuary,” Makoto answered his unasked question.. The alpha leaned back a little, taking another small sip of water from under his bandana. Sousuke had followed his lead, trying his best to expose the least amount of his face as possible. “That’s where the Daimyo lives.”

The dark-haired alpha nodded, looking back up to where the openings were. He thought he could see someone moving inside one of the balconies.

“He stays up there most of the time,” the brunet said. “Lets his O-hime take care of those down here.” He fell silent for a minute and Sousuke sipped at his water, unsure of what to say. It was an uncomfortable silence, or as much of a silence they would get with the noise on the road. Eventually the brunet alpha stood up and Sousuke followed his lead, tucking his water away into the satchel.

Picking their way through the crowds was difficult, especially since Sousuke felt like he was now hyperaware of any figures who seemed to fit into the ‘O-hime’ description. He was so deep in thought, so aware of eyeing the people around him, that he didn’t notice the other alpha had stopped walking. But the brunet stuck out a hand and grabbed him. _Thank god. I need to pay more attention._

The raven alpha stepped back to him, glancing over his shoulder. The motion sent a sickening twinge down his left shoulder as his neck muscles pulled at the wrecked skin and flesh. He winced and gritted his teeth behind his bandana before focusing forward. He tried to ignore the pain that was making his eyes water.

Makoto was standing in front of a man that looked only a little older than the alpha. He was short, stooping, with only two teeth in his mouth. A small, ragged looking child was holding tight to the man’s arm. They were staring at the brunet alpha with an unblinking gaze, brows knit together. As if they were trying to remember something.

They were haggling over a metal knife the small male beta had. Makoto was speaking softly, a kind sort of tone in his voice, but there was a hint of something else, something that Sousuke couldn’t pinpoint. Alpha power, maybe…

Items exchanged hands; the dull-looking metal knife for a sack of dried fish and cave mushrooms. And all the while, the child continued to stare at the alpha. Sousuke was starting to feel uneasy. What was wrong with this child? Why were they looking so intently at Makoto? He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong.

The male beta bobbed towards Makoto, a small sort of bow, to show thanks for their trade. And that was when Sousuke saw the child tighten their grip on the man’s arm, tugging hard to get his attention.

Makoto had turned away, sliding the dull knife into one of his packs around his waist as the man bent to the child, looking annoyed. As Sousuke turned to follow, he just caught the words the child said:

“It’s Green Eyes.”

Sousuke didn’t know what it meant but suddenly the man was calling out to Makoto and he turned at the call of ‘alpha’; the dark-haired man wished he hadn’t. Something was wrong, something bad was happening, and he needed to stop it. He grabbed onto Makoto’s arm and pulled.

Makoto, his attention back on the stooping beta, wasn’t prepared for the strong tug. He stumbled into the other alpha, who had been stepping backwards, not onto clear path but into some rubble decorating the street.

With a loud yell, the two went crashing into the dust, the brunet falling hard on top of the other alpha. Sousuke let out a pained grunt as the man fell against him; the alpha was heavy with muscle.

“What the hell,” Makoto said as he pulled himself off the ground and away from Sousuke. And as he did so, his bandana slid down his face.

“It’s him!” the beta yelled.

“Green Eyes!” the child shrieked.

Heads turned, the crowd falling horrifyingly silent. As Sousuke got up, shoulder screaming in pain, he looked to his companion. Makoto was standing rock-still, his shoulders tense. He didn’t look like he was even breathing.

“Green Eyes!” the child screamed again. “Green Eyes!”

“O-hime! O-hime!” the beta shouted and those in the crowd started to pick up the chant.

All around them the calls of _O-hime_ and _Green Eyes_ was repeated, over and over again. The noise pressed in on them, causing panic to well up inside Sousuke. A wide circle had been formed around them, as if the two were in a spot-light.

Makoto grabbed Sousuke’s arm and started to run. He ran straight at the wall of the people without slowing, and for the first time the dark-haired alpha could tell Makoto was scared. _Terrified_. People scattered, unwilling to stand in front of the two large alphas.

The brunet let go of Sousuke’s arm as they broke through the crowd and kept running. He kept as close behind as he could, shooting a glance over his shoulder. What was going on? Why were the people screaming for the O-hime? Why were they running so hard and fast?

He saw the crowd break apart again and his blood ran cold. An O-hime with several betas close behind, had made it through the cringing people. Obviously drawn by the cacophony of cries, the O-hime looked around and made eye contact with Sousuke.

“Don’t look behind you,” Makoto shouted. “You’ll know if they catch you!”

Sousuke turned forward again, nearly crashing into an old cripple in his path. He gritted his teeth and pushed himself harder, trying his best to keep up with the other alpha.

“What…is going on?” he panted hard, staring at the older alpha as they skidded to a halt behind a swirling rock formation close to the cliff face. They were close to the path leading to the brothel, Sousuke could tell that much.

“Not now,” Makoto said. His eyes were wide with fear. Sousuke could practically smell it, and he could see how the brunet was shaking. “We need to leave. Now.”

“What—”

“ _Not now!_ ” he snapped and turned, now walking at a fast pace. Sousuke jogged to catch up, breath coming out in harsh pants. A painful stitch stung in his side and he did his best to push on and not get left behind.

Then they were running up the winding path to the whore house, Sousuke terrified their speed would send them careening off the cliff into the shambling houses below. Together they reached the building and Makoto flung the doors open.

His head was spinning from the pain and the heat and the exertion and panic and he practically fell through the door after the other alpha. Makoto was already thundering up the stairs to Kisumi’s room, where their things was, but Sousuke stopped. He leaned hard against the railing and tried to catch his breath, willing the world to stop spinning.

“What’s going on?” Sousuke looked up, still trying to see straight. It was Mother, hair pulled up into a knot on the top of her head. Her eyes were wide with shock and concern. “Honey, dear, what’s happened?” she asked, catching hold of his face to peer into his eyes. Sousuke couldn’t seem to catch his breath, but the violently pink hair before his eyes helped ground him. Slowly he came back to himself.

“D-don’t know,” he said. “Something… someone.... called Makoto ‘green-eyes’.” Mother stiffened when she heard him. “What does that mean?” Sousuke’s eyes widened and stared at her. “What? What is it?”

“Love, go up and help Mako gather your things, you must leave immediately,” she said and gave him a push. He stumbled against the step behind him.

“What’s going on?” he demanded and couldn’t help the infliction that forced its way into his voice. He immediately realized he had made a mistake. Mother’s bright eyes darkened.

“Do not try that on me, boy,” she hissed. “You will either go help my child –” _your child?_ “— or stay here and wait for it all to happen. But if you’d like to live the way you are, I’d suggest you _get upstairs_.” Her voice was pure venom, a sound that send chills down Sousuke’s spine and made him stumble up the stairs without a second’s thought.

Makoto was gathering their things together when he came into the room. The brunet didn’t seem quite as panicked, but he was white, so white, and Sousuke was scared that he might pass out. His chest seemed to be rising and falling hard, faster than was healthy. So he moved forward and silently began helping his companion.

Then they were flying down the stairs, backs laden with all of their belongings and supplies. Mother caught Makoto’s arm and grabbed onto his face like she had done with the raven-haired man. Sousuke watched as she ran her thin fingers down his cheek. She murmured something to him and he nodded, swallowing hard. Before the female alpha let go, she pressed a light kiss on his lips.

“Now go,” she urged. “We’ll be fine here, baby. _Go_.”

Makoto nodded and together the two alphas left the establishment. They hadn’t even said goodbye to Kisumi, it seemed to be too urgent for even that. The pink haired beta hadn’t been in the room, so he figured he’d been busy elsewhere.

It took them half the time to get to the truck. He didn’t know if it was the adrenaline pumping through him, helping him run faster, or if it was the fear, but he just knew that they were skidding to a halt in front of the hidden truck. The doors hadn’t even been closed all the way before Makoto was driving away, skidding hard in the sand before the thick tires caught traction.

 

-

 

Kisumi was leaving a client’s room when he heard the doors slam. Eyes widening in surprise, he tied a shawl around his waist and carefully went down into the main entrance area. His Mother was standing stock-still, staring at the rotting front doors.

“Mother?” he asked, feeling his stomach drop.

She turned to look at him and she was pale. “Kisu, baby, something’s happened.”

“What?” he asked, startled. Fear was starting to creep up on him. She was usually so calm, so strong. To see her so shaken was terrifying.

“Someone recognized Mako,” she said, stepping close to him and took his hand. “They had to leave. I don’t know if they’ve gotten away or if the Daimyo will send O-hime to follow him.”

“What?” he repeated staring at her dumbfounded. “How? How, he’s never been recognized before, how did they find out who he was?” Mother simply shook her head helplessly as others slowly trickled down into the main room, all in various states of undress and confusion and fear. They must’ve been drawn by Kisumi’s voice – he was speaking much louder than normal.

The main doors opened again and a thin child covered in dust practically crashed into Mother. Mother turned to look at her.

“Child, what is it?” she asked as everyone stared.

“O-hime,” the child, a messenger named Tokki, panted out. “O-hime, coming here. For Kisu.”

“What?!” Mother gasped, looking back at her son. Kisumi felt frozen, unable to move. Why would they be coming after him? What had he done to warrant O-hime to get him? His mother let go of his hand.

“They know Green Eyes stayed here! They know Kisu is the one who has been helping and hiding him!” Tokki said.

Silence fell in the hall. Tokki had collapsed against Mother, barely conscious after running so hard and fast. All eyes were on the two pink-haired individuals. Mother and Kisumi stared at each other before the older woman started to move.

She handed the partially conscious child to one of the young women near her and turned to her son once more. “You must go,” she said. “You must leave, hide.”

“W-what?” Kisumi stuttered out. His hands were cold and he gripped the shawl around his waist to keep them from shaking. “But Mother—”

“No, baby, you need to leave before they get here,” she urged. “You don’t know what they may do to you.”

“But where would I go?” he asked, voice high with fear.

“Away from here,” she said. “Anywhere but here. You’ll be okay, you were always strong.” Mother shot a glance over her shoulder. “Ata, gather supplies for my son. Kisumi, go get dressed, and _cover your hair_.”

They were some of the only ones in the citadel who had hair as bright and pure. It would be a dead giveaway and Kisumi knew that. At least part of his panic-numb brain was working. Mother gave him a hard push and shocked him out of his unmoving state. He jumped and ran upstairs, hips burning at the excursion so soon after that rough old man.

But that pain was normal, he knew it, recognized it, and pushed it away. He didn’t know what to do as he pulled on clothes, layers to hide his body and his hair. His heart was pounding hard in his chest, constricting his air ways. He felt dizzy.

When he got back downstairs, Mother was holding a bag for him.

“Try and find Mako,” she said. “I know he’s to the east. I know it’ll be hard, but he’ll be able to protect you. Him and that other alpha.” She had tears in her eyes. Again, Kisumi was scared. But this time, he was scared for her and everyone else here at the brothel.

“Will you be alright?” he choked out, feeling his eyes burn with tears too.

“Of course we will,” his mother replied. She kissed his forehead. “I’m always alright, you know that. Go on now.”

Without a backwards glance, hot tears now running down his cheeks at the thought that he may never see her again, he left the place he had called home for his whole life.


	7. People Talk to Me But Nothing Ever Hits Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The alphas are back at the cave with very grave news. Sousuke realizes what Haru is. Things change for the group.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title: lyrics from Yellow Flicker Beat by Lorde.
> 
> I LIIIIIIIIIIVE. I HAVE MANY THINGS to write after this chapter. I have many ideas, things are gonna heat up very soon.  
> On another note! I've been thinking about this for a while and I don't know if anyone else is curious, but I'm gonna tell ya'll the ages of all the baes. (It's partially for me, too)
> 
>  
> 
> Makoto: 24ish  
> Haru: 25ish  
> Kisumi: 17ish  
> Rin & Sousuke: 18  
> Gou: 17
> 
> Hopefully next chapter will be easier - I'm on break and have many ideas.  
> Tata for now, my lovelies!

                This hadn’t happened in a long time – a _very_ long time. And that made it all the worse, because there was an insanely high build-up of aggression in his generally passive form. And now, well now it was all out there.

                The tiny part of his brain, the logical part of his brain, told him that this would solve nothing. That violence was not the answer, at least right now, and it might result in making matters worse. But that tiny logical part of his brain had been bound and gagged by the aggressive _alpha_ surging through his body and he could see no stopping it.

                The cavern wall was hard, he thought vaguely as his head slammed back against it with the force of Sousuke’s push. And Sousuke, a green town-dweller, was surprisingly strong. He could hold his own at the very least. The other alpha’s scent filled his senses, making him even angrier. It was like a drug, making him dizzy and savage.

                Snarling, Makoto pushed off the wall and launched himself at the other alpha, crashing into him with such force the two of them fell to the ground. The dark-haired alpha grunted in pain as Makoto landed on top of him and grappled to pin his arms down, face contorted in rage.

                Sousuke fought him, hard, and suddenly their positions were switched and Sousuke’s knee was pressing hard against his chest, holding him down. “You _bastard_ ,” he spat. His mouth was bleeding, he had probably bitten his tongue and blood was trickling down his chin. “This isn’t my fault!”

                “It – is – your – fault – you – whimpering – omega!” Makoto yelled, no thought to his words, no thought to anything but pounding the living shit out of the alpha holding him down and constricting his ability to breathe.

                The insult seemed to surprise Sousuke because the pressure on his chest lightened; Makoto used the alpha’s moment of shock and kicked him off. Sousuke fell back into the cavern wall, head smacking hard against the stone with a dull thud.

                “—oto!”

                Was someone talking to him?

                It didn’t matter, he was too angry.

                He was too deep.

                He lunged forward and hurled his body against the other alpha. Sousuke gasped as the wind was knocked from him.

                “What – doing – op!”

                It was like an insect in his ears, the words coming from behind him.

                Pain blossomed through his face and head as Sousuke punched him hard. Blood flooded his mouth and he gagged, staggering backwards. A loud crunching sound filled his head.

                “STOP!”

                A hand grabbed onto his forearm as he pulled back, intent on knocking the dark-haired alpha down. It was small and slender, strong but weak, _omega_ , and how dare anyone stop this, this was between two alphas, they’d settle it how alphas were supposed to settle things. He spun around and hit the person who had grabbed him with the back of his hand.

                The yelp of pain was drowned out by the painfully overpowering command of,

                “On. Your. Knees. NOW.”

                And he found himself collapsing, falling hard against the uneven ground. Sharp pain to his knee added to the pain of his broken nose and he swayed light-headed.

                Makoto couldn’t move.

                He tried to, he really did, to fight, to throw off the force that had caused him to fall to his knees. But he couldn’t. Instead, he sagged where he knelt, blood dripping down his face onto his chest and the cave ground, and looked up through his hair.

                Gou stood before them. Hands on her hips, standing solid and grounded, the young alpha looked furious. Makoto couldn’t meet her gaze so he focused on her chin.

                “What,” she hissed out, voice quiet and venomous, “are you two doing?”

                Makoto’s head was clearing and his body was draining of the animal-like aggression that had been filling him; as the adrenaline slowly left his system, the pain tripled throughout his head. He panted hard, chest rising and falling hard and he breathed through his mouth.

                “Isn’t it bad enough without us fighting between ourselves?” Gou demanded. Her gaze slid from Makoto to Sousuke. The brunet could hear him breathing just as hard. The alpha-scent was so strong in the cavern, from the fight, and he had the urge to jump up again to _reclaim_ , but Gou’s scent was so strong that it was making him a little dizzy.

                “Sou, why are you back so early?” her question was a demand and even though it wasn’t directed at him it made him shudder, rounding his shoulders.

                Sousuke’s voice was laced with pain when he spoke. “Makoto was recognized. We got chased out of town,” he said.

                Gou turned to look back at Makoto. “And why were you fighting?”

                Makoto cringed and exposed his throat to her, breath uneven. Still staring at her mouth, he said, “…they’ll follow us. They’ll come after us.”

                “The people chasing you?”

                The brunet swallowed the blood that had filled his mouth. “Yes. They’ll come after us. And…it’s…my fault.”

                Sousuke snorted behind him but it had no heart behind it. Now that Makoto’s head was clearing, he could say that. Because it was, it really was.

                “It’s both of our faults,” the dark-haired alpha spoke up after a long stretch of silence.

                And it was only then that Makoto registered the other sound that occupied the cave. A hushed whispering, accompanied by soft whimpering. And he thought about the person he had hit. And realized he didn’t know who he had struck.

                He made eye contact with Gou, pleading for her to let him move or at least see what was going on, because _where was Haru?_ She seemed to understand and stepped aside, revealing a sight that made Makoto slump further to the ground.

                Rin was crouched beside Haru; the omega had fallen backwards, collapsing against the red-headed beta – at least he had been caught before making painful contact with the ground.

And his face, oh god _his face_. His cheek and brow were rapidly darkening, turning purple and swollen. And one beautiful blue eye was starting to puff up.

                That wasn’t the worst of it though. Because Makoto, in the rush of his anger, had forgotten that them getting back meant that Haru was still in his heat. And an alpha fight such as this, with them so worked up, would cause absolute hell for the dark-haired man. It was obvious that he had been affected already.

                His cheeks were flushed, pupils dilated and mouth slack. And he was shaking, shaking hard against Rin. The redhead met Makoto’s gaze and glared as viciously as he could all the while stroking Haru’s hair.

                “The two of you need to cool down,” Gou spoke up and her tone was gentle. Well, gentler than it had been minutes before. The demanding pressure in her words was gone and now she was simply scolding them. Even that was powerful. “Go clean yourselves up.” And with that she turned her back on the other two alphas and hurried over to her brother and the omega.

 

-

 

                Together the two redheaded siblings were able to sooth Haruka from his state of alpha-induced hysteria and he was back to how he had been before the two had burst into the caves fighting. He understood a lot more of what was going on than Rin or Gou, that was for sure, because although he was acting relatively normal he was pale. But maybe it was the dark bruising now taking up half his face that made the rest of his skin whiter than normal.

                “How’re you feeling?” Rin murmured to the omega. They had started a fire and the light from the flames danced off their faces and hair.

                “Mm,” Haru replied with a shrug. His pupils weren’t as dilated and he wasn’t shaking, so the beta would take that as a good sign. Prodding would do nothing, he was sure.

                Sousuke came back some twenty minutes after the female alpha had sent them to clean up. Still dripping with water from the lake and holding his wet shirt to the back of his head, he sat far apart from the group against the wall. As if scared of what Gou or Rin might do.

Makoto hadn’t shown back up yet.

                Gou was brushing her hair out, quiet and distracted. Rin had an idea of what she was thinking about, never that great at reading his sister’s moods. The redheaded beta had never seen anything like it. Not the fight, really. Even now, alphas got into fights. No, it was just how powerful his little sister had been. Her voice had him shaking and he could only watch in shock as both tall alphas collapsed to the ground without another word needed.

                Haru had been pressed against him, having just been hit hard across the face by the brunet alpha. And Rin had to grab onto him as the man’s legs gave way at the sound of the girl’s demand. It had nearly sent Rin tumbling, of course it would hurt Haru, would effect Haru.

                “Rin,” Haru said and turned away from the fire. The beta raised his head to look at him. “Can you go check on Makoto?”

                Rin blinked, surprised at the request. He wasn’t necessarily close to the alpha. Haru had grown up with him. They were close friends. But here the omega was, asking him so genuinely to see where he had wandered off.

                “Why me?” he asked in confusion.

                “I…don’t want to see him right now,” the omega replied, looking away.

                Rin understood. He nodded and got to his feet, dusting his pants off before heading down to the lake.

 

-

 

                After ten minutes of watching Sousuke sitting alone, Haru got to his feet and went to him. The alpha looked up at him when he stopped walking. The shirt he was holding to back of his head was bloody, and Haru crouched down and took it from the dark-haired man, nudging him so he could see where he was bleeding.

                Sousuke moved without a word, which Haru was glad for. He didn’t really feel like talking, and although Rin’s presence helped him immensely with his heat, something inside him twisted in excitement at the proximity to the large alpha. He focused on his chosen task instead.

                He had obviously cut the back of his head during the fight. There was a raised, swollen lump that when he prodded at it Sousuke hissed in pain and jerked away. Haru simply scooted forward to look more closely at the wound.

                The cut wasn’t big but through experience Haruka knew that head injuries took forever to stop bleeding. It ended up making things look worse than it was. So although the lump was large and painful, Sousuke wasn’t really in danger of anything else. It wouldn’t even need to be sewn up. He was sure the alpha would be pleased with that.

                “Gou,” Haru called, looking over to where the girl was sitting. She looked up. “Boil some bandages…please?” She nodded and got up, rifling through the bags to find them and the heavy cast-iron pot.

                The omega turned back to Sousuke. “Keep holding this on until then,” he said, shoving the shirt back into the alpha’s hands. Teal eyes focused on him sharply as he did as he was told and it took everything in Haru’s body to not drop his gaze. Damn his heat. Damn his omega instincts.

                “…Thanks,” Sousuke murmured and leaned back against the wall so he didn’t have to hold the blood-soaked clothing. Haru nodded and looked around, feeling awkward and aroused. He was fighting the desire to crawl right into the younger man’s lap, and he figured it was time for him to leave now. These feelings didn’t come up when he was near Gou, so by her side was much safer.

                “I, uh, wanted to tell you something,” the alpha said. Haru looked back at him and cocked his head to the side in curiosity.

                “While at the citadel,” Sousuke said slowly, “Uh…well, I could tell…before, that there was something between you and, and _him_ so I just…thought I’d say something.”

                Haru raised his eyebrows. Why was he so awkward? What was he struggling with?

                “He had s-sex with someone when we were there,” he spluttered out, blush coloring his cheeks. “A pink-haired beta.”

                “Oh,” Haru said. He didn’t really know why the alpha was telling him this. He wasn’t bonded to Makoto, Makoto wasn’t his and he wasn’t Makoto’s. But Sousuke actually looked _concerned_. And if he wasn’t filled with pain and hormones he probably would’ve chuckled.

                “Kisumi, you mean?” he asked and Sousuke’s eyes widened.

                “Uh, yeah.”

                “Why’re you telling me?” Haru asked, blinking at him slowly. He rocked back, putting a little bit more space the alpha and himself. The longer he was away from Rin, the longer he was close to Sousuke, it was becoming difficult to control himself. He was sure that his scent would hit Sousuke, if it hadn’t already.

                Haruka didn’t think it had. From how Sousuke and the other town-dwellers acted, it seemed their society would’ve kept omegas in heat somewhere they would be safe. And away from alpha hands. Meaning, Sousuke probably wouldn’t be able to control himself.

                “Well, you two… aren’t you two?” Sousuke asked.

                Haru couldn’t help it. He really did laugh this time. His chuckle was quiet. “Not particularly,” he hummed. “We aren’t bonded.”

                “But you two…you two…?” Sousuke’s face was even redder now. He looked like he was going to spontaneously combust.

                “So?” Haru asked. He stood up and swayed on his feet. The omega turned away from the alpha, intent on walking away, but a strong hand grabbed onto his wrist. He shuddered as the skin the alpha was touching tingled and started to burn. He bit his lip and turned to look at the larger man, eyes carefully blank.

                “You’re…” Sousuke said and Haru’s pulse spiked at the tone in the alpha’s voice. He tugged at the hold the dark-haired man had on him, but Sousuke didn’t let go. His pupils were blown and Haru could tell that his scent had finally hit him.

                “Let go,” he said, although his voice came out weak. His knees were shaking.

                “…omega,” Sousuke continued.

                “Let go,” Haru repeated, struggling more forcefully, eyes widening in panic.

                A second later, Gou had stepped in. She tapped Sousuke’s hand sharply and he released the omega’s wrist before the female alpha slid between them. She turned to Haru.

                “Go sit by the fire,” she murmured to him and he nodded, walking back to the blankets set out, legs trembling. He watched both of them through the flames. Gou was speaking to the other alpha.

-             

Rin didn’t see the interaction between the omega and his best friend because he had been with Makoto, down by the lake. He shuffled back into the main cavern, face burning and very flustered, and ran his fingers through his hair as he tried to calm himself down. He settled down beside Haru and pulled his knees close.

                “How’s Makoto?” Haru asked.

                Rin jumped. How was Makoto? How? He was good, he was okay, right? Was he?

“U-uh, yeah, fine, fine he’s okay, he said he’d come back soon,” the redhead mumbled. It seemed Haru was still distracted, because he didn’t notice the flush coloring the beta’s face. He took a slow, deep breath before looking over at Sousuke, seeing his head bandaged.

                “How’s Sousuke?” Rin asked.

                “He’ll heal,” Haru replied flatly, ending any sort of discussion.

                Rin looked up as he heard footsteps. Makoto had finally come back. He shuffled around the fire, passing the beta, who pointedly didn’t look at him, and settled down beside Haru.

                “Haru,” he murmured softly and gently turned the omega’s face towards him. Haru let him, but didn’t meet his eyes. Rin could see the fire reflecting in his large blue gaze, flickering back and forth with the flames.

                “I’m sorry,” Makoto whispered, almost too quiet for Rin to hear. “Can we talk about this…?”

                Haru’s gaze flickered to the alpha’s face then nodded curtly and got up from the fire. He started towards the lake and the maze of caverns that led away from it, Makoto close behind. Rin watched until they disappeared from view, and then scrambled to his feet. Both Sousuke and Gou looked at him.

                “What do you think you’re doing?” Gou asked.

                “I want to know what’s up,” Rin replied and started walking towards where the two older men had disappeared.

                “Give them privacy!” Gou reprimanded.

                “I won’t get in the way!” he said scowling.

                “But they don’t deserve you spying on them. They need to talk some stuff out,” she said. Rin looked at her long and hard.

                “I know you’re dying to know what they’re gonna talk about too, don’t kid yourself,” he replied and turned again. With that he walked away from the fire quickly and quietly. He heard footsteps behind him and soon both Gou and Sousuke were with him. He grinned to himself, pushing away the feeling of guilt that threatened to overtake him and followed Haru’s scent.

                “I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Gou whispered as they peered around the edge of a rocky ledge into a smaller cave; Makoto and Haruka were in there, standing close together. Makoto was holding Haru’s face between his hands.

                “ – know that I didn’t mean to,” he was saying as they crept into earshot. “I would never mean to.”

                “Hn,” Haru mumbled and Rin thought he wasn’t looking at the alpha again. His cheeks looked flushed in the dull light.

                “I’ll always take care of you,” Makoto continued, brushing hair from Haru’s face. The omega pulled away from him and took several steps back.

                “You can’t take care of me from yourself,” he said quietly, voice breathless. Beside him, Rin felt Sousuke tense a little. He grabbed onto his best friend’s arm, but the large alpha hadn’t moved. Haru wasn’t done talking though. “And look what’s happened now.”

                “I know,” Makoto said, voice cracking in desperation.

                Rin shuddered and thought back to when he had gone to check on the alpha. He had spoken in that same scared, desperate tone.

                “And now we have to leave,” Haru said. His chest was rising and falling faster than normal and his hands twitched where they hung by his side.

                “I know,” Makoto repeated.

                “And now you’re back early,” the dark haired man hissed and wrapped his arms around himself tightly. There was a soft grunt behind him and he turned to see Sousuke turning away, pressing his forehead hard against the stone. Rin had barely noticed, but omega-scent was starting to reach them. “With him. And he _knows_.”

                There was such anger and fear in Haru’s voice, Rin didn’t know if he had ever heard someone speak like that. The alpha nodded and reached out, catching ahold of Haruka’s chin once more. This time Haru didn’t pull away.

                “But I’ll keep you safe,” the brunet said again and kissed the omega. All tension in Haru’s body left and he sagged as Makoto wrapped his arms around the man’s slender waist. The alpha was holding him up now, Haru letting out small whimpers and gasps as Makoto claimed his mouth.

                Sousuke jolted next to him and the next moment the large alpha was fleeing the scene, running as fast as he could back to the camp, chest heaving. Gou followed behind quickly, obviously no longer comfortable with the scene.

                Rin was rooted to the spot, his face crimson and his hands clammy and shaking. He looked back at the two, unable to stop himself, to see Makoto bury his face in Haru’s neck. The redhead felt sick as he watched the alpha grip the omega tighter, grabbing at him, tugging him closer. The gasps from Haru filled his ears and the grunts from Makoto seemed to worm their way down into his gut.

                He swallowed hard, willing his feet to move. Haru’s head lolled to the side and his eyes opened minutely.

                Their gazes met and Haru didn’t look away, just staring at the beta with half-lidded eyes, clinging weakly to the alpha who was now undressing him. Then the omega blinked, and it was like the spell was broken. Rin ran as fast as he could back to the camp, back to his best friend and sister, all the while trying not to vomit.

                What had he thought, really? Had he thought it had meant anything?

                Rin shook his head vigorously as he sat down next to his sister, who looked disturbed and concerned. Sousuke was on the other side of the fire, twisting a length of rope between his fingers. To occupy himself, Rin realized. The beta had smelled the scent but it hadn’t done anything to him. Sousuke, however…Sousuke was an alpha, and heat-scent usually sent them into a rut. That’s what the books said, at least. Rutting didn’t generally happen in Samezuka.

                Maybe the scent of another alpha had allowed Sousuke to get away before he had lost control. Maybe he had simply panicked before his instincts took over. Whatever it was, Rin was glad for it. He was glad that Sousuke had run away.

                “Rin, are you okay?” Gou asked softly. “You, well, you’re still really white.”

                Rin nodded absently.

                “Is it because of Haru?” she prodded. But that didn’t make sense and she knew it. Rin had seen Haru all those days, working through his heat, unbothered. Concerned, but unbothered by the scent or the sight. He shook his head.

                “I’m fine sis,” he replied and tried to smile at her. It didn’t work.

                Gou scowled at him. “I know you’re not…” she said. “But I suppose I can’t make you talk if you don’t want to.”

                “You can’t,” Rin replied.

 

-

 

                They headed east when night fell, leaving the cave and the lake and the comfort of the dark. Haru drove first, eyes fixed on the horizon and not speaking much at all. None of them did, except for murmuring requests for water or food. The engine roared as they ate up desert, trying to put as much space in between them and the Citadel, in case they were being tracked. Which they were.

                Around dawn Haru veered away from the cliffs and out into the rolling plains of sand. The sun rose slowly on their left as they headed south. Gou and Rin played games with a piece of string as Sousuke ran his fingers over that same length of rope as time passed.

                They were three days out when the truck began to slow. Makoto was the one driving and he let out a loud groan as the truck spluttered to a halt in the sands. The sun was at its highest, burning down on them, as Makoto and Haru hopped out to check the engine.

                “What’s wrong?” Gou asked as she stuck her head out of the door.

                “We ran out of gas,” Haru replied. His face was contorted into an angry scowl.

                “What do we do, then?” Rin asked, hopping down to stand next to Haru.

                Makoto wiped the grease on his hands onto his pants. “There’s nothing much we _can_ do. We’ll have to leave it here.”

                “What?” Sousuke asked sharply.

                “We have to walk from here,” Haru said flatly as he climbed back into the cabin of the truck, starting to gather important items.

                “We can’t just…walk through the desert,” Gou said weakly, staring out across the sand.

                “You can stay here if you like,” Makoto said. “But they’ll find the truck, and you with it if you’re still here. Otherwise, we walk.”

                “We stay here until the sun goes down,” Haru told them. “Then we leave.”

 

                Stars twinkled above them, harmless and beautiful, as the group walked away from the truck. It had already started to gather sand, and would no doubt soon be swallowed up by the desert in a days time.

                Haru led the way through the moon-lit sands as a cool wind bit at their exposed faces. How far would they get, before they ran out of food and water? Haru didn’t want to think about it, if he was honest to with himself. Because he knew they didn’t have that long.


	8. Part II: Incarnadine and Sarcoline

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new leg of their journey has started and safety has been found. Haru and Makoto are surprised to see a familiar face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my lord I am so sorry this took me so long to write. I was really struggling. AND it's not that long of a chapter. PLEASE FORGIVE ME.
> 
> We are starting PART II, if you didn't notice. I hadn't been planning to break this thing into parts, but then I thought about it and it made sense for what's happening and what will happen in the future. Hopefully the next chapter will be easier to write. So, Part II - different style of chapter names (they mean something but I'm not gonna tell you, you'll have to look them up and just wait and see how they relate, I suppose~). New leg of story, sort of. I'm actually amazed that I'm still writing this. 
> 
> And thank you [Maybeillride](http://archiveofourown.org/users/maybeillride) for reading the first draft of this chapter. Go read her post-apocalyptic ABO fic, it's awesome! [Boundary Waters](http://archiveofourown.org/works/3293252/chapters/7187849)

Part II

Incarnadine and Sarcoline

 

                A day and a half into their trek through the sand, and Gou was the first to collapse. She tried her hardest, but she was just smaller, less athletic. Walking so long and hard with so little water and food took a toll on Sousuke and Rin as well – they dragged their feet through the sand – but they were both athletic, they were both used to pushing themselves.

                Both Rin and Sousuke ran to her as fast as their exhausted legs could carry them. She was crying, sitting in the sand with tears running down her dirty face.

                “Gou! Don’t cry,” Rin said as he knelt before her. He took her face in his hands and wiped her tears away.

                “I-I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I just c-can’t. My legs w-won’t m-move.” Her breath was coming out in harsh, ragged pants and she looked like she might pass out or throw up. Under the dirt and sunburn, she was pale and her eyes shimmered. She might be sick. Sun stroke.

                Haru watched from a distance. He took this time to crouch in the sand, allowing his legs a short rest as the siblings held each other. He knew this would happen. If he was honest with himself, he was surprised the town-dwellers had lasted this long. After all, Sousuke and Rin were still walking. Or had been. Rin didn’t look like he could get up from where he had settled down in front of his little sister.

                The omega looked up at Makoto, eyebrows drawn together in a scowl. He had grown fond of the town-dwellers, especially Rin because of his effect on his heat, but they were wasting time. They needed to _keep moving_. He had a vague idea of where they were heading, and he knew that eventually they would run across a caravan or small shanty town. Somewhere, that if they were allowed, they could rest, eat, and replenish their water.

                If they lasted that long.

                But they had to keep moving. The longer they stayed in one place, the less distance they covered and the more food and water (not much was left at all anyway) they would consume. It was a death wish to stay here.

                Haru was only the slightest bit lightheaded from the heat, but he was used to the feeling. Used to the feeling of the sun beating down on his pale skin, most of which was covered completely. Used to not eating and the strain of walking and walking and walking with no break. His body went into autopilot because he knew that if he stopped he would die. And he would not die, not after everything that had happened in his life. This would not kill him.

                Makoto sighed and set down his satchel with a thud. Pulling off his goggles and the bandana from his mouth, he went back to the three town-dwellers huddled in the sand.

                Haru stood up, grabbed Makoto’s satchel, and walked back as well.

                “We can’t stop here,” the alpha murmured to the group.

                “Gou can’t keep walking! We need to take a break!” Rin demanded, an arm around his little sister. She started crying again; it was obvious that she hated her weakness in this instance.

                “Makoto is right,” Haru spoke up through his bandana. “We need to keep going.”

                “But –” Sousuke started.

                “I’ll carry her,” Makoto said.

                Haru scowled at his companion but the alpha pointedly didn’t look at him. He supposed it would be the best option though and so he sighed, shifting the satchel into a better position on his shoulder.

                “I can carry her!” Rin exclaimed.

                “Get up first,” Haru snapped. The redheaded not-beta looked at him, a little startled at his tone. “Prove that you can walk.”

                “Haruka,” Makoto murmured. “This is hard for them, they aren’t used to this. You’re being too harsh.”

                Haru’s head snapped around to the brunet and glared at him. He was _not_ in the mood for this. “We need to keep moving and you know that. We can’t baby them, they need to toughen up.” And with that he turned his back on the group and started walking in the direction they had initially been heading.

                Rin gaped at the omega. He hadn’t ever acted like that in the three-ish weeks they had known him. He was usually quiet, accommodating.  But not now. He was frustrated and obviously would not be coddling the group any longer.

                The redhead dragged himself to his feet with difficulty. He needed Sousuke’s help to get all the way up and Haru knew there was absolutely no way he would be able to carry his sister, no matter how strong he was or light she was.

                The group caught up to Haru. Makoto was carrying Gou on his back as if she weighed nothing and Haru figured she really didn’t. Not to Makoto. Her face was pressed against the dip between his shoulder blades and by the trembling of her thin shoulders Haru knew she was still crying. No one commented as they continued to walk.

 

                Night had fallen and Gou was back on her feet walking next to her brother. They were holding hands and talking softly. Haru couldn’t hear what they were saying and didn’t much care. Sousuke was a little in front of them, closer to Haru and Makoto than his two friends and he looked like he was in pain.

                His shoulder.

                Well, Haru knew he would just have to deal with it. There was nothing they could do right now but keep going and hope they reached someone with food and water and shelter. And who were willing to share of course.

                It was Rin who first spotted the fires burning in the distance. They were still several kilometers away but from the light of the fires and the still fat moon they could see tents and blurry forms that could only be people walking to and fro. Both redheaded siblings let out relieved laughs and Haru knew why – besides exhaustion. They had run out of water hours ago, before night had fallen, and they wouldn’t last all that long without it. Not with everyone so weak.

                Haru and Makoto exchanged brief looks and Haru knew Makoto was thinking the same thing: _I hope they’re friendly._

                Their pace sped up, the light of the fires and the forms of other people giving them an extra boost of strength and soon the tents grew larger, the fire grew brighter, the people into more focus.

                The caravan had settled down on a large patch of compacted earth. It provided a solid, flat place for them to set up all of their tents. Haru noticed the change. The landscape was changing, they were on the edge of a large flat plain, rocks scattered across the stretched expanse of earth. It made sense to him for the caravan to have stopped here. Several large desert-deer were posted near the edge of the camp and one turned to look at the group as they approached with large silver-brown eyes. It let out a low mewl.

                Haru stopped walking and the others followed suit as a handful of people came to see why the creature was making the noise.

                “Others!” someone whispered. “Out here so far!”

                “Get the Chief!” a young woman called.

                The groups stood at a standstill until a tall figure appeared through the tents. Haru figured he must be the chief – he could sense the obvious power held in the large man’s form. He was even taller than Makoto and Sousuke with broad, scar covered shoulders and arms.

                “Who are you?” he asked in a booming voice that made Haru’s knees tremble. Alpha.

                “Just a few travelers,” Makoto answered, stepping forward. Back straight, head held high. Respectful but not meek. An alpha to an alpha. “We saw your lights. We are not a threat.”

                The chief eyed them carefully, raking his eyes up and down Makoto before looking at the others. His eyes lingered on Haru and Rin for one second too long for Haru’s liking, but then he looked back at Makoto.

                “All we wish is a place to rest and maybe some water, some food,” Makoto continued in his most passive, calming voice. The one that could win over nearly anyone. “And then we will be on our way. We promise.”

                The group behind the Chief murmured to each other and the young woman who had called for him initially walked up to them. Haru narrowed his eyes. She was a little taller than he was and had her dreaded hair tied into a tight knot on the top of her head.

                “Oh look at them, they’re exhausted,” she said, looking from each of them before gazing over her shoulder. “Let them stay for a night or two, father. We have plenty of food and water, you know we can spare some for five souls.”

                The Chief blinked slowly at his daughter before looking back at the group. Sousuke had started to grip his shoulder, teeth gritted. Gou looked sickly, dizzy and pale.

                “Look, the girl is sick. The boy is hurt. We can look after them for a day or two before we all move on,” the dreadlocked young woman said.

                It seemed that the Chief had a weakness for his kin, because his shoulders relaxed and he nodded to her. “They will be in your charge though, you know I have other matters to attend to.” And with that he turned away and walked back into his tent. They were given a quick glimpse into the dwelling before the canvas fell closed once more: a worn table, several chairs, food.

                Haru felt a little weak at the knees. It seemed that they would be safe, would be able to recover, before moving on. The young woman moved forward and slipped an arm around Gou’s waist. Rin opened his mouth to protest, his eyes widening, but she looked at him and smiled.

                “I am only helping her walk, I am not taking her away from you,” the young woman said gently. “You look weak, dear, does this help?”

                Gou nodded and allowed the young woman to hold some of her weight, looking exhausted. Her shoulders drooped and after a moment she dropped her head onto the young woman’s shoulder. Maybe she had somehow gotten her feet to move automatically, her last stint on her own legs seemed to have drained her of any energy she had left.

                Haru stepped a little closer to Makoto and Sousuke, eyeing the others around them warily.

                “I am Kamuko,” the Chief’s daughter told them as she led them through the camp. People watched curiously from the sides of the paths and from inside tents. “I am the Chief’s daughter and am second in charge. I will take care of you all, make sure you get food and water, and are not bothered while you rest.”

                “Thank you,” Makoto intoned with a small bob of his head and one of his usual smiles. “We are all extremely grateful for your help. As I said, we will move on again once we’ve regained our footing. We don’t want to be too much of a burden, five more mouths can be difficult, I know.”

                Kamuko waved her hand dismissively. “Do not worry, we have plenty of food, plenty of water. And if my Father has some trouble, I will speak to him.”

                Two women pulled the flaps of a tent open for the small group. Haru glanced at each of them as he passed and something in their expressions made a small chill run down his spine. But he was exhausted and dehydrated and sick, it was more than likely a trick of the torch burning near the entrance, a twist of his dizzy head.

                The tent was large and the ground had been covered with rugs and furs. Both of which looked worn and well-used, but the rugs, thick tapestries made with thick fibers, were still whole and the furs still soft.

                “Sit, rest,” Kamuko said as she helped Gou down onto the padded ground. Pillows were stacked near the fire burning in the center and the redheaded girl slowly sank into them with a thankful sigh. Rin dropped his bags near the mouth of the tent and collapsed beside his sister.

                “Miu, Noboru, I need you,” Kamuko said as she straightened, voice loud and commanding.

                Immediately two people came into the tent. One was one of the women who had been standing at the mouth of the tent, the other was a young boy, no more than 12 or 13. He was thin, nobly kneed and dusty.

                “Yes Kamuko?” they said in unison.

                “Noboru, go fetch the Apothecary, quickly. One of our guests is sun-sick and the other appears to be in great pain,” she said. The boy scampered off as soon as she was done speaking. Then she turned to the woman. Haru figured she was a little older than Kamuko but she still looked strong. “And Miu, please get food and water for them.”

                Haru had settled down while she was giving her orders and carefully laid the satchel onto the ground, allowing himself to relax. He took in the surroundings as the others settled as well. Sousuke looked like he was in a lot of pain, and he vaguely hoped that the Apothecary had something to dull it. He looked pale and glassy.

                “I will return shortly, please, relax,” Kamuko said with a smile before leaving the tent. The group was silent for several moments after she disappeared.

                “Hey Haru, how are you doing?” Makoto asked, startling the omega from his drifting thoughts.

                “Mm,” he replied with a small shrug. He was as good as he could be. “I’ll live.”

                This seemed to please Makoto because the alpha smiled at him before lying down on the rugs and furs. He stretched, long and hard before relaxing with a satisfied grunt. He, like Haru, was used to this sort of thing, so even though they hadn’t gotten any water or food yet, simply sitting down on a soft flooring, safe from the wind and with a warm fire lighting up their comfortable space.

                The tent entrance was pushed aside and two people entered, carrying a multitude of things in their arms. One was Noboru, the one sent to get the Apothecary. He was holding a basket containing bottles filled with dried leaves and roots. And the other…the other…

                Haru’s eyes widened and he couldn’t stop his jaw from dropping slightly as he saw the second man who had followed the young boy into the tent. He reached to his side and touched Mkaoto, giving his leg a little shake.

                He knew Makoto had recognized him as well, by the way he sat bolt upright in the furs to goggle at the young man. The young man they hadn’t seen in several years, that they had thought to be dead.

                Rei.

                The young man stopped in his tracks in the mouth of the tent, staring through his red glasses at the two of them. It felt like time stopped right then, as they looked at each other. And then they all seemed to realize what they were doing; Makoto laid back down and Rei looked away.

                What was Rei doing here? How had he gotten here? How long had he been with these people? Rei’s presence, although startling, was hopeful and reassuring. If _he_ was the Apothecary, then Gou and Sousuke were in good hands, and if he was here, then these people, whoever they were, must be people worth trusting.

                As Rei and the young boy set down the variety of supplies, the mouth of the tent opened again. Several people came in, laden with water and food that they handed out. Dried and cured meat, desert roots found deep in the hard-packed earth, some nuts obviously traded from a far-off place.

                “Noboru, I think we’d better help him first,” Rei said as normally as possible, nodding to Sousuke, as the others started eating. “The young woman looks like she will be alright with food and water.” The boy gave a nod and scrambled over to Sousuke. The alpha drew back a little, startled at the quick movement, before relaxing once more. He was handed a few pieces of cured meat, which he ate without chewing as Rei and Noboru got organized.

                Haru took the jar of water he was handed and drank from it deeply before handing it over to Makoto. Then he moved so that he sat beside Sousuke, bright blue eyes watching Rei’s every move. The navy haired beta seemed to be forcing himself to focus on what he was doing.

                Noboru had set about to pulling Sousuke’s shirt off. The alpha let out a loud cry of pain as his shoulder was jostled and he let out an animalistic snarl at the boy, who jumped back a few paces in fright.

                “Please, he’s only trying to help,” Rei said soothingly. “We need to get to your injury.”

                “I…know…” Sousuke hissed out through clenched teeth. “It just…argh.”

                Rei nodded and very gently started peel away the bandages stuck to Sousuke’s sticky skin. “What’s your name?” he asked and Haru knew what he was doing – trying to distract the alpha as he pulled the ruined fabric from the inflamed flesh.

                “S-Sousuke,” he gasped out as Rei removed the last of the cloth, exposing his shoulder.

                The dark-haired alpha pushed some desert root into his mouth, eyes tightly closed at the pain. He nearly gagged as he chewed and Haru couldn’t help but smile a little. They were still getting used to the unrefined taste of edible food out here.

                “Nice to meet you Sousuke, I’m Rei,” the beta said gently as he used an experienced finger to poke at the skin of Sousuke’s shoulder. It was inflamed and infected. Although Haru’s stitch job hadn’t been bad, it needed serious care to get it healing properly.

                “Yours?” Rei asked under his breath, not looking up from Sousuke’s shoulder.

                “Yes,” Haru replied.

                “Very good,” Rei answered softly so that only the omega could hear. Sousuke was in too much pain to pay attention to either of them though, because now Rei had gathered a wet rag and had started to clean up the puffy, red flesh.

                “Would you like to be asleep for this, Sousuke?” the blue-haired young man intoned, sitting back to meet Sousuke’s pain-glazed eyes.

                “Yes, god yes,” he panted out. “Please.”

                “Noboru, get the essence of poppy for me. Three drops in a cup of water for Sousuke,” Rei said.

                Noboru sifted through the basket until he found what Rei had asked for. It was a large glass jar filled with thick amber liquid. Haru could see the remains of several poppy flowers floating slowly in it. He knew where Rei had gotten those flowers and he was amazed that he still had some. But it was obvious that the young man had figured out how to distill their effects, make it last longer, because he had been very specific about the number of drops to be given to Sousuke.

                “This will help you sleep,” Rei said as Noboru handed him a tin cup with the poppy essence and water in it. “Drink all of it.”

                Sousuke obliged, downing the whole thing in one swallow.

                “You should lay down,” Haru murmured to the alpha. “It works fast.”

                “Ha-… your companion is right, you should lie back,” Rei said.

                Haru frowned. Why had Rei stopped himself from saying his name? Did he feel unsafe? Did he feel that he shouldn’t speak Haru’s name? Or any of their names? He hadn’t addressed him or Makoto directly, not by name. It made Haru a little uneasy, but pushed it from his mind as Sousuke laid down.

                The large alpha was out in a matter of minutes.

 

                Makoto had been just as surprised to see Rei as Haru. But he also didn’t want to do anything rash, so said nothing, acting as if he didn’t know the young man. Not that he could ever forget him, after all he had done for Haru and himself. That wasn’t the point. There was a reason Rei hadn’t greeted them in an expected fashion, he was sure, so he wasn’t going to push it. Instead he had focused on eating and drinking his fill, watching out of the corner of his eye as Rei patched up Sousuke.

                Kamuko had come in and out several times since Rei’s arrival, checking on the group, getting more food. She had let them be a while ago, promising that they would not be disturbed and that they should rest for as long as they needed.

                Gou had fallen asleep after she had eaten and had some water. She and Rin were lying together on the other side of the fire. The brunet alpha couldn’t tell if Rin was asleep as well, but he had his arm wrapped loosely around his sister’s waist and his eyes were closed.

                Makoto settled back down on the rugs. It was incredibly comfortable, so comfortable that he knew it would not take him long at all to drift off. He rolled onto his side and looked at the smaller man who lay between him and Sousuke’s sleeping form.

                Haru blinked at him sleepily and gave him a small smile. “Safe,” he murmured.

                “I will be back in the morning, rest,” Rei said to no one in particular and Haru just hummed in acknowledgement.

                “Yes, safe,” Makoto replied. “Sleep, Haru.”

                The omega closed his eyes and burrowed deeper into the furs and rugs, looking warm and contented. Makoto smiled at his best friend then looked over at their other companions. Sousuke’s shoulder was wrapped in clean bandages; it looked like he wouldn’t wake up for a while and he figured that was a good thing.

                He looked over at the two redheaded siblings one last time and saw the fire reflecting in Rin’s maroon eyes. They gazed at each other from opposite sides of the fire for a long moment and Makoto felt a chill that had nothing to do with temperature go down his spine before Rin blinked, breaking the contact, and turned away.

                The brunet alpha shook his head gently. No time for that. No time for being distracted by a beautiful set of eyes. They were safe, for now, they needed to recover their strength if they wanted to continue moving. He knew that staying with a caravan for several days was risky, not only for them but for those in the caravan, because they might still be being followed by the O-Hime. But he also knew that they couldn’t go on without rest, food, and water.

                So Makoto settled down more comfortably, closed his eyes, and drifted off to the sounds of the fire crackling and his companions breathing deeply.

                Safe.

                For now.

 


	9. Amaranth and Eburnean

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their safety is not safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LOOK I FINALLY FINISHED THIS CHAPTER IT'S BEEN FIVEVER I AM SORRY. I've been busy and lazy all at once, so I didn't write much. BUT HERE IT IS. Chapter 9. Second chapter in part 2. There's actually a bit of souharu in this one! :D It's not quite as long as I'd like, but I was struggling to stretch and I actually like how this turned out! :D

Chapter 9 – Amaranth and Eburnean

 

                For the first time in a very long time, since everything had happened, Rin wasn’t jolted awake by nightmares. Instead he woke slowly and comfortably as he rolled onto his back, stretching out his sore muscles. If he kept his eyes closed, he could pretend that the last month had all been a horrible, vivid, and incredibly long dream. Because there was no way it had happened when he felt like this. Comfortably warm, resting on his soft bed. He allowed himself several more minutes in this fantasy before opening his eyes – wishing and hoping and pleading that he would be looking up at his bedroom ceiling. Maybe Gou bursting in to throw a pillow at him because he had slept late.

                But when Rin opened his eyes, he didn’t see the ceiling of his bed back in Samezuka. Instead, stretched canvas filled much of his vision and he remembered where he was. A pang of loss cut through him painfully as he blinked sleep from his eyes.

                The sun was up. The tent was pleasantly warm and filled with a soft golden light. The treated skins lessened the harshness of the sun, which the redhead could appreciate. He pushed himself up into a seated position and the exhaustion in his limbs came back and thought that all he wanted to do was collapse back onto the rugs and furs. His throat demanded water and his stomach demanded food, however, and so he yawned widely and denied his desire to flop back down.

                He looked around the tent as he ran a hand through his hair. It was getting very long, passed his shoulders. He tied it up into a ponytail, thinking he would ask one of his companions if they would be willing to chop a good chunk of it off.

                Sousuke and Makoto were still in the tent. His sister and Haru were nowhere to be see, but he was surprised that he wasn’t worried. The two alphas were talking about something – someone – but broke off as Makoto noticed he was awake.

                “Morning, sleepy head,” the brunet alpha hummed with a smile and passed him a water skin. Rin drank deeply as he attempted to glare.

                “Shut up,” he grumbled when he had come up for air. “I’m not used to this sort of thing, not like you and Haru. I didn’t expect you to be awake before me though Sousuke. Not with them drugging you and all.”

                Sousuke rolled his eyes. “Shoulder woke me up,” he said, popping a nut into his mouth. “Their doctor, Rei or whatever his name is, gave me something for it but Makoto was awake and I was hungry.”

                Rin observed his best friend closely. He was looking a lot better than he had been. His shoulder was wrapped in clean bandages again and his face was relaxed. The redhead figured Sousuke felt much as he did. Maybe they were getting a second chance. Being around a larger number of people, in this ‘house’, was almost like being back in Samezuka.

                “I thought you’d sleep the day away,” Makoto commented. Rin could tell that he was teasing him by the way his lips were curled into a small smile, the way his eyes shimmered. Had Makoto ever done that before? Teased him like one of his own? Rin knew that Makoto teased Haru often, had heard him do so.

                “Well, I’m awake. What’s a guy have to do to get some food around here, though?” he asked. Sousuke handed him a stack of cured meat and he began to eat. It didn’t taste too terrible, he was surprised. Nothing like he had ever had, actually. Better than that root stuff he had eaten the night before. “Where’s Haru and Gou?”

                “Exploring, I think,” Makoto said with an unworried shrug.

                Rin looked at him carefully. “Aren’t you a little worried?” he asked. Makoto cocked his head to the side and Sousuke paused to look at his friend curiously. Rin scooted forward a little so he was closer to the two and lowered his voice before saying, “well, he’s an omega…”

                “Gou’s with him,” Sousuke said before Makoto could say anything.

                “And I think Rei went with them as well,” the other alpha said.

                “It seemed like you and Haru know –” Rin started.

                Makoto cut him off just as Kamuko entered the tent with a kick to his shin. The redhead jumped, startled, and glared over at his companion while massaging the bone.

                “Ah! All have woken up!” the chief’s daughter explained looking happy. “I was worried, but I suppose I was worried for nothing. It looks like you have rested well.”

                Rin nodded, shooting a curious glance at Makoto. But the alpha was no longer looking at him.

                “Yes,” he answered Kamuko with a smile. “All thanks to you and your father.”

                Kamuko waved her hand dismissively. “My father did nothing for you! Besides allowing you to stay, I suppose.”

                “Well that alone means a lot,” Makoto said.

                “I suppose,” Kamuko replied. “Would you like to join your other two companions, I believe they’re looking around the camp. Or you may rest more of course.”

                Now that Rin had had some food and water, his curiosity flared. It would also help him keep his mind off dark thoughts that were always close, always ready to sneak in. So he nodded and got to his feet.

                “I’m gonna rest more,” Sousuke replied. Rin grinned at his friend.

                “You’re a gimp now,” the redhead said, nudging him gently. The alpha gave him a venomous glare and settled down once more on the rugs, stretching out his shoulder into a more comfortable position.

                Rin and Makoto left Sousuke alone in the tent to go explore the caravan and find the others. The beta looked around curiously as they walked. Everyone they passed by greeted them happily, warmly, and Rin felt like he could actually relax as they walked through the tents.

                The redhead did notice, though, that there were no young children. The youngest he saw was probably 13 or 14 at the youngest. Maybe they were inside, hiding from the hot sun, but it just struck Rin as strange that no small children were here. He highly doubted that birth control was a thing out here, so that just raised a lot of questions. He kept them to himself as he and Makoto found Haruka, Gou, and the apothecary Rei.

 

-

 

                With the extra sleep, Sousuke felt like he was actually healing again. It felt good to be able to eat food and drink water freely, rest freely, at least for a few days, to recover his strength. His shoulder ached, and the blue-haired beta, Rei, had told him that he’d be lucky to have that ever stop. It would lessen, but his shoulder would never be the same again.

                At least the caravan had painkiller, which helped immensely. They were crude and made him tired too, but they helped dull the pain.

                The teal-eyed alpha leaned back against the side of the tent as he watched the group of people around the large bonfire. Kamuko had decided to welcome their guests in a manner in which everyone would have fun and relax. Potent alcohol was being passed around as music was being played. People from the caravan were already dancing around the large bonfire. The cacophony of celebration helped Sousuke relax.

                Rin and Gou were dancing on the other side of the fire; they had both had a good amount of alcohol and were laughing and holding on to each other. Sousuke hadn’t seen the siblings act like this in years and it warmed his heart. Makoto had been claimed by several women of the caravan, including Kamuko, and were dancing with him. He didn’t seem to mind. Instead, he was often throwing his head back as he laughed, as the women danced and touched him teasingly.

                The pounding of the music seemed to thrum through his body and his heart beat in time with the dancing people as their bare feet moved against packed sand. He had so far avoided the alcohol being passed around for the fifth time, not sure if he’d enjoy the buzz. He had smelled it as it was passed to him and it made him gag, so now he was avoiding it.

                But now Sousuke’s shoulder was aching again. Maybe he would slip away, go back to their tent, get some more rest. Maybe it was because he was hurt and healing, but it seemed that he was more tired than the others. He hoped that he would recover soon, or at the very least get used to the dull throb and have more energy. The alpha stood, stretching, and started to head away from the bonfire and celebration.

                As he skirted the fire, a lithe, dancing figure practically tripped into his arms. He caught them as they tumbled against him and looked down at the person, eyes widening as he took in Haru’s flushed face and relaxed limbs. He looked up at the alpha as well and his lips curled into a smile.

                “Leaving?” Haru murmured as Sousuke righted him. The omega didn’t let go of the younger male though, clutching at his arms as if he would fall without support.

                “Shoulder hurts,” Sousuke mumbled, looking away from the man. He was a little ashamed that he had been caught leaving, especially for such a reason. He looked back at Haru’s face in time to see a flash of pain cross his pale features. The alpha blinked in confusion. Did Haru feel for him?

                “Stay,” the omega murmured and stepped closer so that he was standing flush against Sousuke. Sousuke stiffened, eyes widening even further, as he felt Haru’s body against his own. Haru’s hands slid up his forearms to his biceps to his shoulders then to his neck. “Stay.”

                Sousuke felt frozen, unsure of what to do. His hands hung limply at his sides as the omega pressed close, slowly leaning up onto his toes to bring his face closer. Part of his brain told him to wrap his arms around the slender figure, kiss him hard, taste him, touch him. And part of his brain told him that Haru didn’t know what he was doing, that it was the alcohol, that he wouldn’t do something like this, especially when he wasn’t in heat. And yeah, maybe a very little part of him was terrified. He had had a girlfriend while in Samezuka but only one and they did little more than kiss once or twice before she told him he was going too slowly for her.

                “Put yours arms around me,” Haru whispered in Sousuke’s ear, arms wrapped around his neck. “You can do it.”

                “I…I…” the alpha stuttered, heat rising to his face and to other places further down as he felt Haru’s breath against his ear and cheek.

                “It’s easy,” Haru breathed, pulling back just a little and sliding his hand back down the alpha’s arm. He guided Sousuke’s hand to around his waist. A little numbly and definitely in shock, Sousuke mirrored the act with his other hand and slowly wrapped both arms around the other male’s slender waist.

                The omega smiled a little and leaned up again. “You can relax,” he breathed against Sousuke’s lips, sending a strong chill down his body, and his fingers twitched against Haru’s waist. The raven-haired man let out a soft chuckle and closed the distance between their lips.

                Time suddenly came to a halt. The music faded in his ears and the fire’s crackling quieted; the dancing people around him stopped moving, frozen in time as the older male coaxed him to deepen the kiss. His head spun and he nearly let go of Haru’s waist in his daze. He had never felt something like this, never in his life. His ex-girlfriend (now dead, he realized fleetingly) never had made him feel this way when she had kissed him. He almost felt like he was flying, soaring high above and looking down at their still figures.

                And then Haru was pulling away from the kiss and Sousuke made a rather undignified little gasp as their lips parted. His vision was filled with wide, impossibly blue eyes. The omega was smiling at his expression. An amused light filled his slightly glazed gaze.

                “Have you never been kissed?” he murmured, sliding his fingers across Sousuke’s jaw.

                “I…have,” he replied, clearing his throat. “But never…never like that.”

                Haru looked at him carefully. “It’s the end of the world, let everything go,” he said in a soft voice, and suddenly he was kissing him again, fingers tangling in Sousuke’s hair, keeping him close.

                Somehow they got back to the tent, but it was all a blur. Sousuke knew that it took twice as long to find it because they kept kissing, seeming to be able to part for too long. Sousuke’s head spun at the intensity Haru kissed him, at how those quick, strong fingers slid under his clothes to touch his stomach and chest.

                Sousuke was aware that he was stumbling backwards, falling against the rugs and furs, and Haru falling with him. The omega was undressing him as he kissed him hard, and there wasn’t much the alpha could do but let him do so. He was achingly hard by now, hands touching and caressing Haru’s waist and back. He felt scars decorating the omega’s otherwise smooth back, and for a moment tried to break the kiss to look. But Haru didn’t allow him.

                “No,” the older male breathed. “Just touch me.”

                Sousuke groaned as Haru put his weight down onto the alpha’s erection.

                “There you go,” Haru murmured, moving down to Sousuke’s neck. He mouthed against the flushed skin there, nipping and sucking, causing the alpha to gasp and moan, twitching in pleasure. He rocked his hips up, desperate for friction, for physical touch.

                And then the omega was moving down his body, leaving small bite marks as he went.

He made quick work of Sousuke’s pants and then he was pulling out his cock and Sousuke was so very hard and it felt so so good as the smaller man started to stroke him and when he bowed his head wrapping his lips around him Sousuke cried out and tangled his fingers in those soft raven locks and then he was swallowing him swallowing him down so passionately and so hard that Sousuke’s heart stopped and his mind went blank and he had never felt such pleasure such need such want and Haru was going to kill him with this as he massaged his balls with a free hand and his nose was pressed against Sousuke’s belly right above his member and he could feel the omega’s throat fluttering around him and he reached down numbly and felt the bulge his cock was making in Haru’s throat and he couldn’t take it it felt so good too good so good and and and…and…

 

-

 

                When the others finally returned to the tent, they found Sousuke and Haru curled around each other. Haru was still mostly dressed but the alpha had been stripped almost completely. The two looked peaceful, fast asleep. Rin couldn’t help but ogle at them for a long moment in the dim light. He hadn’t even noticed them leave, and here they were, looking like they had had a good fuck. Well, maybe half a fuck.

                Makoto had disappeared too, sometime after Rin and Gou had collapsed near the fire, out of breath and laughing hard. The redhead was sure that the last time he had seen the brunet alpha, he had been with Kamuko. The young woman had been dancing against the tall alpha. But he was too tired to worry, and plus, Makoto was an alpha. He would be fine.

                So he sprawled out on the furs beside his sister, sighing contentedly, and drifted off to sleep quickly, aided by the alcohol…

 

                Rin didn’t know how long he had been asleep before he woke with a jolt, feeling sick and dizzy. He crawled passed his sister, stumbling to his feet outside the tent as he tried to get further away before vomiting.

                He managed to get to the edge of camp before he collapsed, throwing up all the alcohol he had had during the celebration. He heaved several times, his throat burning, until nothing else would come up, and fell back to sit on the ground, feeling overheated.

                Well, he did feel better. And he wasn’t all that surprised, if he was being honest with himself. He had never really had alcohol before, and the stuff that they had been given wasn’t refined in the slightest. Leaning back against the tent he had collapsed beside, he stared up at the sky and took deep breaths to cool his body down.

                The stars twinkled brightly high above him but he could see the tall tell signs of the sun at the horizon. The sky there wasn’t quite as pitch black, more of a beautiful indigo, like Haru’s hair.

                Rin was feeling much better now so he got to his feet slowly, wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his shirt, and slowly started making his way back to the tent. It was harder than he expected. Many of the tents looked the same and even with the light of the torches burning by some of the shelters, it was dark.

                He was just turning towards the center of the complex when he heard hushed voices coming from the nearest tent and paused to listen, too curious for his own good.

                “—is getting tiring, Kamuko.”

                “Patience father,” the young woman hummed. “All is well. It is almost time, already. We have one, and the other large one is feeling the effects, that is clear.”

                Rin stiffened, eyes widening. He shuffled a little closer to the tent, trying to be as quiet as he could, as he strained to listen. What were they talking about? Had what? Had who?

                The chief let out a heavy sigh. “I know,” he said. “But people are becoming restless.”

                “It _is_ hard,” Kamuko answered. “Having such a prime omega in our midst. And the other, of course.”

                Rin’s hands felt numb as he listened. They were talking about Haru.

                “Don’t worry,” she continued. “Soon.”

                The sound of footsteps startled the redhead standing outside the tent, prompting him into motion. He practically ran back to the tent, unsure if they had left, if they had heard or seen him, or if they were just settling down of the night. But sometime was terribly wrong.

                He scrambled back into the tent and collapsed back next to Gou. He grabbed his sister’s shoulder and shook her. “Gou, wake up,” he murmured. The girl just murmured, tugging away from Rin, and settled back down to sleep. “ _Gou_ , wake up!”

                “What’s wrong, Rin?”

                Rin looked around and saw the outline of Haru sitting up beside Sousuke, eyes wide and staring, curious. The not-beta crawled around his sleeping best friend to sit beside the omega.

                “I just heard Kamuko and the Chief talking,” he whispered. Haru just blinked at him, listening carefully. Rin took a deep breath, trying to calm his pounding heart. “They mentioned you. They said the people are becoming restless.”

                The omega watched him, silent, but he looked thoughtful. “Probably going to move soon,” he murmured. “These people can’t stay in one place for too long.”

                Rin groaned. “You’re not getting it, Haru,” he said, keeping his voice quiet. “The people are restless because of you!” He felt, rather than saw, the way the other stiffened to an almost violent extent. He met the omega’s gaze, hoping that Haru would take him seriously.

                “We’ll leave tomorrow,” Haru said firmly. “Right now, sleep.”

                Relief washed over him at that. Haru believed him and they would get out of here as soon as possible. He took a deep breath. Ran his fingers through his hair. Settled down beside Haru to sleep. He paused then slowly reached for the other’s hand. Haru let him lace their fingers together and with the warmth of the other beside him he drifted off to sleep once more.

 

-

 

                Haru was panicking. Makoto had yet to return and he would never have left, or leave for this long of a time. As he dressed quickly, Rin stirred at the rustling. Sousuke and Gou were still fast asleep.

                “Haru?” Rin mumbled sleepily.

                “Makoto’s not back. I need to find him,” he said. “We’ll leave once I find him. Wake them.” And without waiting for a response from the redhead, he headed straight to the mouth of the tent. It opened as he reached it and he jumped in start, fear flooding his body.

                It was Rei. His eyes were wide with anxiety and he grabbed onto Haru’s wrist as soon as he saw him. “You need to leave right now,” he whispered as quietly as possible. The omega stood motionlessly, staring at the blue haired beta. “ _Right now_.”

                “I have to get Makoto,” he replied. Haru was aware that Rin was watching them both, silent and staring. Good. He would know what was going on. “He’s missing.”

                “They have him,” Rei said. “That’s why you need to leave. They’re not going to wait any longer.”

                “What does that mean?” Rin asked thickly.

                “You don’t want to know. You just need to leave.”

                “Not without Makoto,” Haru snapped. “He wouldn’t leave me.” He glanced back at Rin and the two alphas. “What are you waiting for? Wake them up!”

                The redhead jumped and did as he was told, shaking his sister and his best friend roughly. It took a long time to get them to stir and that’s when Haru realized just how fucked they were. He turned back to Rei.

                The beta looked like he was in pain. “T-they made me,” he whispered. “I couldn’t say no.”

                “What…Rin…stop it,” Sousuke groaned, trying to push Rin away.

                “Get _up_ ,” the redhead demanded then looked at Rei. “What did you do to them?!”

                “…To keep them out of the way,” Rei choked out, looking at Haru pleadingly. Asking for forgiveness. “I had to. I had to.”

                Rin snarled and jumped to his feet, lunging at the beta. Rei flinched back as Rin tried to grab him, but Haru got in the way, wrapping his arms around the other. “We don’t have time for this,” he hissed, holding onto him as Rin fought to get at the other beta. “Get them up. We need to find Makoto.”

                The redhead slumped in his arms and Haru let him go. Rin glared at Rei then turned back to drag Sousuke and Gou to their feet. They seemed out of it, Gou sagging enough that Rin had to grab her around her waist so she didn’t collapse.

                Haru turned back to Rei. “Go. Before they know you helped us,” he said.

                Rei nodded and they both turned to the tent entrance. Once more, before Haru got there someone pushed their way in, blocking their exit.

                Kamuko smiled sweetly at her. “Where are you going? Rei, darling, what are you doing with them? I thought I told you to stay away from them.”

                Rei was trembling. He stared at the ground. “Just…just checking on them!” he said weakly. Kamuko’s smile widened.

                “Oh dear, I knew something was up between you and them. You told them to leave didn’t you?” she said, walking up to him. Rei flinched backwards but Kamuko, taller and broader than the beta, grabbed him by his arm and threw him to the ground. He let out a yelp as he collapsed and scrambled away as fast as he could.

                “Well, that’s okay,” the young woman said. “It’s not like they’ll be leaving to tell anyone. As if anyone would care.”

                Haru felt Rin move next to him. He wasn’t able to grab him in time and the redhead was attacking Kamuko, looking angrier than Haru had ever seen him.

                “No!” he yelled but it was too late.

                Kamuko was faster and stronger than Rin. She obviously knew how to fight, and Rin, a townboy, didn’t have a chance. She grabbed him by the throat before he could get close enough to land a hit and pulled him close.

                Haru didn’t know what to do. He heard Gou collapse behind him. He couldn’t do anything as Kamuko tightened her grip, Rin scrabbling against her hand as she cut off his airway. She looked at the omega with a wide smile then turned back to the redhead.

                “We haven’t run across one of you in a long time,” she said.

                “One of…me?” Rin choked out when she allowed him to breath.

                “An in-between. Not beta. Not omega.”

                Haru felt his blood run cold. His hands were numb by his side and his head was spinning. They could tell, of course they could tell. He didn’t know why he hadn’t realized he hadn’t noticed any omegas in the whole camp.

                “W-what?” Rin whimpered.

                Kamuko leaned close and licked Rin, running her tongue up his cheek. “You’re going to be delicious.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ヾ(。◕ฺ∀◕ฺ)ノ  
> Where is Kisumi?  
> ひょっとしたら。。。～


	10. Argentum and Ærugo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things turn from bad to worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First and foremost: TRIGGER WARNING  
> There is a graphic description of gang rape at the end of the chapter (a character is explaining, it does not happen) and I wanted to warn you guys from the beginning. There's also torture and shit... This chapter is not happy even if it was fun to write (difficult, I didn't know how graphic I wanted it to be - the torture isn't actually all that graphic). 
> 
> OKAY NOW THAT THAT'S OUT OF THE WAY. This chapter jumps around a lot too and I think they're ooc but here it is anyway because omg. I know it's been long. These next chapters (including this one) are gonna have a lot of shit happening. Shit hits the fan, so to speak. 
> 
> I did write a little in a style that I absolutely LOVE (panic attack/dream sequence shit). Be kind to me. Even though I'm being an absolute whore eheh.

Chapter 10

 

                When Makoto woke he woke slowly and confused. His head pounded each time his heart beat and he felt sluggish and disoriented. It took him several moments to realize that he was in a forced seated position, and that he couldn’t really feel his hands. He jerked violently as this realization sank in and opened his eyes wide.

                The bright, diffused light of the tent blinded the alpha for several seconds and he blinked rapidly to try and clear his spotty vision. When he finally did, his stomach dropped and his blood ran cold. He was tied tightly to a pole, hands behind his back. Well, no wonder he couldn’t feel his fingers. His shoulders ached at the position they were pulled back into and he looked around to try and figure out what was happening.

                He remembered the bonfire. He reminded drinking and dancing. He remembered following Kamuko through the tents, being led by the hand as the young woman looked over her shoulder at him, smiling widely. He remembered pushing his way into the tent and then… nothing. His memory stopped right there, turning pitch black and filled with pain.

                He had been knocked out.

                Makoto lurched violently against his bindings as he thought of the others. He looked around the tent again and realized another figure was tied to another one of the tent poles to his side, slumped limply, obviously unconscious. The brunet could tell from here that Sousuke was still breathing, so he was still alive. That meant the others… He swallowed hard.

                “You have finally woken up.”

                He turned his head slowly to the entrance of the tent. The Chief and his daughter came in, both looking pleased and excited. “I thought you would sleep the day away,” the Chief said with a deep chuckle. Makoto shuddered.

                “He was a hard one,” Kamuko told her father. “He wasn’t effected by the drugs nearly as much as the other two alphas.”

                “I see that,” the Chief said as he knelt down in front of Makoto and grabbed at the brunet’s hair, fisting it to drag his head back. The large alpha ran his thumb across Makoto’s temple and pressed down hard against the dark bruise that had formed there.

                “What…do you want?” Makoto grunted, teeth clenched at the pain flooding his head.

                “From you? Not much,” Kamuko said with a sweet smile. “Except, maybe, a little fun.”

                “Come now, Kamuko,” the Chief said and released Makoto’s hair roughly so that his head hit the poll. “He’s not just all yours.” The young woman huffed but nodded and walked over to where Sousuke was also tied. She crouched down in front of the other.

                So where was Gou? What about Rin and Haru?

                “What are you going to do…to us?” Makoto asked, meeting the Chief’s gaze defiantly. He wasn’t scared of him. He had already been through hell. No, he was scared for his companions. For Rin and Haru especially. For what these people had in store for them. How would the townspeople handle this, whatever ‘this’ ended up being? Endless scenarios flashed through Makoto’s mind. Haru was strong, Haru had been through hell just like he had, maybe more, but Rin and Gou and Sousuke… They were naïve and soft and weak.

                “Well, we needed to get you and your other two alphas out of the way,” the large alpha replied, dragging a stool from the edge of the tent to settle before him. “Your other two, the omega and the… special one… they are who we really want.”

                A loud slap made the two alphas look around. The Chief only glanced briefly to the side but Makoto strained against his bindings when he realized Kamuko was trying to wake Sousuke. She slapped his face again, dragging his head back by his hair.

                “Time to wake up,” she said in a singsong voice, hitting him again. Makoto watched as the alpha finally regained consciousness. Kamuko slapped him again, just for the hell of it, it seemed, and he let out a pained grunt as his eyes flickered open. “Good.”

                “Now,” the Chief said, drawing Makoto’s attention back to him. “Alphas are not as good, so really we just wanted your omegas, like I said. But it doesn’t mean you do not have anything to offer us.”

                Makoto was trying to keep an eye, or at least an ear, on Sousuke and Kamuko. She was cooing something to the alpha, who was pale and wide eyed. Makoto wished he could hear what she was saying, but she was speaking too quietly for him to do so.

                “Entertainment,” the Chief continued. “Oh, and shelter.”

                The brunet alpha blinked slowly at the Chief, unsure what he meant. The older man laughed darkly and grinned, sending a pointed glance up to the stretched canvas of the tent. And suddenly Makoto understood. He understood everything and he cursed himself for not picking up on it. He was supposed to protect them all. He was an alpha, the most experienced alpha of their little group, and he hadn’t noticed that they had walked into a death trap. He took a steading breath. Calm was needed in this situation. Nothing good would come of panicking of showing fear.

                “Now I get it,” Makoto said, again meeting the Chief’s gaze.

                “I knew you would. You look like a well-traveled alpha after all. You know the ways of the world, that’s obvious,” the Chief said, crossing his arms.

                “What’s he talking about?” Sousuke asked in a hoarse voice. Both the Chief and his daughter laughed again, like he was the most amusing thing they had seen in a long time.

                “Oh can I keep this one? He is so naïve!” Kamuko said and Makoto caught the young woman stroke Sousuke’s cheek. The raven-haired alpha jerked away from her, drawing another laugh from her.

                The Chief looked back at Makoto. “Are you going to tell him? Maybe if you tell him, it’ll soften the blow.”

                Makoto turned to look at Sousuke. The alpha met his gaze. He was shaking and he was so pale, so terribly pale that the brunet thought he might just pass out again.

                “Makoto?” Sousuke asked.

                “Look at the tent, Sou,” Makoto said. “How do you think they got so much canvas?”

                The other alpha looked up at the tent. Then he looked at Kamuko and the Chief, then back at Makoto once more, a dawning look of horrified comprehension stretching across his face. He shook his head. “No.”

                “It is the easiest resource of course,” the Chief interjected.

                Sousuke swayed, the only thing keeping him up being the ropes tying him to the post. Kamuko read his green-tinted face correctly and jumped back as he turned to the side and vomited. The trembling in his frame was more pronounced now and he rested his head back against the pole, panting weakly.

                Makoto didn’t blame him. He had been sheltered, protected. The brunet had come across these kind people before, knew what they were in for, and knew that the chances of escape – and survival – were minimal.

                “At least kill us before you skin us,” he said, looking across the tent to stare blankly at wall of canvas. At his words, he heard Sousuke retch again, as if the words spoken made everything more real than the stretched human skins above and around them.

                “We shall see, but it is easier when you’re dead,” the Chief said and shook out his hair. He stood and looked over at his daughter. “I will leave them in your capable hands, daughter, I am going to see the little redheaded alpha.”

                “No!” Sousuke yelped, straining against his bindings. “Leave her alone!”

                The Chief turned to look at the raven-haired alpha, smirking widely, but he didn’t reply and simply walked from the tent.

                Kamuko looked at both alphas thoughtfully, tapping her chin. Then she went to the mouth of the tent and retrieved a bag from the person guarding them before coming back in. She dragged the stool to sit an equal distance between Sousuke and Makoto, so both of them could see everything as she pulled them out.

                Knives, serrated and smooth. Pokers and brands. A double-sided fork-like implement that Makoto thought he knew the use of. Rope. A whip with a splayed end that would surely break the skin. The brunet alpha took a deep breath in through his nose and closed his eyes. Sousuke made another retching sound, gasping and choking to breathe. Makoto wished he had some words of comfort, but he didn’t. He had nothing to say, because there was nothing to say that would make this any easier, any better.

                “Which one to choose,” Kamuko said in a singsong voice, moving her finger between them with each word. “Let god say! Which one to choose –” Makoto groaned, was she really doing that? To choose who to start with? He felt a little sick. “— which one to choose? Let –” Sousuke. “—God—” Makoto. “Say!” Sousuke.

                She let out a pleased hum. “I’m starting with you then,” the young woman said and poked around at her bag to choose what she wanted to start with. Makoto looked over at the other alpha and could see that Sousuke had turned even more pale than he already was.

                Finally the fork-like implement was chosen. “Sousuke,” Kamuko said, stepping over to him. “Do you know what this is?” She spun the double-ended instrument between her fingers, the leather strap flopping as she did so.

                Sousuke shook his head as he pressed himself back into the pole he was bound to.

                “It’s from ancient times,” she said, holding it up to the alpha as if measuring.. “It used to be called a Heretic’s fork, when people believed in god. Do you know what it does?”

                “Hurt,” the blue-eyed alpha said through clenched teeth, breathing heavy through his nose.

                Kamuko chuckled. “That’s the whole point, dear. But do not worry, it won’t kill you,” she said. Then she dragged Sousuke’s head back by his hair so that she could fit the leather around his throat. He grunted in pain, struggling to breathe, as she arranged the fork.

                “The ends sit here,” she hummed. One end of the double-prongs rested against Sousuke’s chest. The other rested right under his chin. “Let’s see how long you can keep your head like this, or else you’re going to bleed.”

                Makoto watched as Kamuko pulled away from Sousuke. The alpha was breathing hard, neck extended so that his head didn’t apply any pressure to the instrument. Eventually, Makoto knew that Sousuke would become tired, unable to hold his head up, and the weight of it would cause both ends to pierce into the alpha’s skin. It was no doubt sharp enough to slice through the bottom of his jaw, through the soft tissue between his jaw bones, and through his tongue, if left long enough. It would sink into his chest, probably stop at his collar bone. It would hurt a lot, and would take a long time.

                The young woman pushed Sousuke’s head down just enough that the forks pierced his skin enough to draw blood and he let out a groan of pain. “Perfect,” she said and let go of his head. “I’ll let you sit with that while I play with your friend.”

                Vaguely, Makoto was glad that that was all Sousuke would have to deal with right now. He could probably hold out for a while without spearing his neck, and so he wouldn’t have to handle anything else. Kamuko dragged the stool to sit before the brunet alpha, dragging her bag with her.

                “Now, I am sure you will be more difficult,” she said, selecting a long, smooth knife. “Which I like. Let us play a game, shall we?”

                “A game?” Makoto asked, breathing slowly and steadily. He had dealt with this sort of thing, he had lived through this sort of thing, he would survive this.

                “Yes, a game,” Kamuko replied. She hooked the bottom of Makoto’s shirt with the tip of the knife. “If you scream, I will cut at your friend. But if you are able to hold out, all he will have to do is watch.”

                “Remove the fork,” Makoto said.

                She chuckled. “Oh, no, no. You don’t get to make the rules. Either you play with me while he watches, holding his head up for as long as his little heart can manage, or I will slice and gut him, and decorate that little omega of yours with his insides.” Makoto swallowed hard and nodded. “Good! I’m glad we are on the same page.”

                And with that, the young woman dragged her knife upwards, cutting off his shirt to expose his abdomen and chest. She made sure that the tip of the blade dragged against his skin and he let out a soft hiss as small droplets of blood formed along the thin line.

                _Nothing more than a line. Breathe. Breathe through it._

                Kamuko laughed, harsh and loud, as she ripped the rest of his clothes off.

 

-

 

                The tent Rin and Haru were being kept in was small but surprisingly comfortable. They had been tied, but just tight enough that they couldn’t escape. Apparently they didn’t want to bruise their precious meat. They had simply left them there, two strong looking betas with them as guards. Rin had already passed out from fear and regained consciousness by the time the tent started to lighten.

                Haru sat slumped to the side, staring blankly across the enclosed space. Away from his thoughts, away from his body. A coping mechanism that had gotten him through many a situation. Rin’s voice, however, pulled him from that numb and disconnected state, and he raised his head.

                “H-Haru,” the not-beta gasped out. Haru looked over at his companion. All of the blood was still missing from Rin’s face, making his hair and eyes look an even deeper red against the whiteness of his skin. “What do we do?”

                The omega blinked slowly, processing the question as he dragged the last bits of his mind back into the present. “I don’t know.”

                “Where’s Gou? Sousuke? Makoto?” he asked and his voice trembled. His lips shook and he bit at them with his sharp teeth, enough to make them ooze blood.

                “I don’t know,” Haru replied again.

                “What’s going on?!”

                “I don’t know,” Haru repeated but that was a lie. They were going to get eaten. The only thing he hoped for was that they would kill them before starting the dismemberment process, but he didn’t let himself hope _too much_.

                “You’re not helping!” Now Rin was snarling. Haru looked back at him. Some color had returned to his cheeks and now he was furious. Good, maybe rage would help him fight and survive. If there was any chance of them surviving this.

                “Rin…” he said slowly.

                Rin looked away and towards the guards. One of them was watching the two with a somewhat hungry expression on his face, smirking at the panic and anger the redhead was showing. “Where are my friends?!”

                The betas both chuckled. “Well, your two male alphas are with the Chief’s daughter right now…I am sure she’s started to have fun with them. I wonder how long they will last?” one asked the other. Haru closed his eyes, trying to shut out the words, but Rin’s voice was keeping him painfully, annoyingly grounded. He just wanted to drift away. Why couldn’t Rin just _shut up_?

                “A-and my sister?” Rin was now struggling against his binds. Twisting and fighting against the ropes. It would only cause chafing and bleeding, Haru knew. He should stop. Stop and think. Think because Haru wasn’t having any luck, as his mind kept drifting.

                “Oh, your sister is nice and comfortable right now.”

                Rin and Haru both looked around as the Chief came into the tent, smirking as he settled down in front of the two.

                “Not for long, of course. But for now. Better than your other two friends, that’s for sure. My daughter can be vicious.” He watched the two carefully, the smirk had turned in a smile, kind and gentle. How misleading, how twisted this man was. Haru took to staring above his head at a seam in the tent’s canvas.

                “Do you want to know what we will do to her? To them?”

                Rin whimpered next to Haru and the omega couldn’t help but glance quickly at him.

                The Chief leaned back and drew a pipe from one of his many pockets, lighting it with a match. The acrid scent of harsh smoke drifted to Haru and he tried to block it out. “Well, alphas don’t taste good, you see,” he told them. “So they are used for recreation. We haven’t come across such a pretty girl alpha in so long, my people will have much fun with her…As for the other two? Who knows what my daughter will choose for them…”

                He let out a soft laugh at the wail of horror and panic that escaped Rin’s lips. Haru looked back at the tent, letting his eyes slide out of focus.

                _Maybe this was it. Maybe after everything he had experienced, this was now the end. What a way to go. How terrible this would be._

_Maybe he **should have** thrown himself from the Daimyo’s Sanctuary all those years ago. _

 

-

 

                _It was all the same, always the same. The pain, although coming in different forms, was always the same. Bearable, unbearable, throbbing, stinging-biting-stabbing-burning-dragging-pulling-always hurting hurt hurt hurt **hurt** – but it drifted away eventually, it always did but would it always? _

                He was remembering now. Fragments. Pieced together from a life before. Before Rin and Sousuke and Gou. Before he had rescued Haru from the Daiymo’s clutches – _Haru. Haru. Haruka. Friend-lover-forever together Haru was strong so strong but Makoto, he wasn’t as strong as Haru no no no Haru was his strength those blue eyes that pale skin that black hair_ – the lives they had had before they had escaped wasn’t all bad though.

                Kisumi. Mother. The others at the brothel. They had been family – _family, family, family_ – and he wondered, were they alright? Were they safe? _Such bright pink, such beautiful violet eyes, family friends family lovers friends parents_. Mother had been their mother. Yes. That was correct. _Don’t forget that._

                And then red. Red. Maroon and crimson. Bright and fierce but so naïve, so innocent _Rin Rin Rin_ that he wanted to show him how the world really was wanted to claim him as his _own his own omega because he wasn’t a beta not really **why did everything have to hurt so much** Rin could be his_.

                Makoto let out a groan of pain as his jaw was gripped, forcing his eyes to open. His vision swam. The most recent injury – dripping of hot oil against his naked thighs – stung and throbbed. How would they get out of this? Could they? Would this finally be the end?

                He hadn’t screamed, not yet. Kamuko was impressed, he could tell in his pain induced daze. She was getting frustrated too, though. She wanted him to scream and beg , for her to stop or her to end it, but _this is nothing it’s nothing, I’ve survived more I need to survive, I need to protect them. Who’s them? Haru? Haru could protect himself –_ More oil fell onto his thighs and he bit hard against his cheek – _but Rin, soft Rin, innocent Rin, he couldn’t protect himself…_

                “I have to say,” Kamuko said, drawing Makoto’s gaze to her face. “You sure are stubborn.” She clicked her tongue and tightened her grip on his jaw. “So is your friend.” She forced his head to the side so he could see Sousuke. The other alpha was shaking, trying his hardest to keep his head up, but he was obviously coming to the end of his rope. Blood trickled down from small pricks on his chest and chin.

                Kamuko let go of his head and it lolled until he could hold it up on his own.

                “Maybe I need to give you a break,” she hummed. “You need to recover a little… You have become numb to the pain.” She stood. “I will return.” She gave him a hard kick to the stomach, and to Sousuke as she passed him, then the flap of the tent fell closed.

                _The city was huge and it felt like that and didn’t at the same time. He knew his way around and which streets to avoid because a boy his age wasn’t safe in some areas – in no areas – but some were safer than others and his feet ached he had been running for so long trying to find Haru._

                “Makoto.”

                _The factories were awful **are awful** no rest **no rest for the wicked** – but was he wicked? Was Haru wicked? Others would collapse, dead or dying, and be pushed aside into the pits and there was no way of surfacing if you ended up in the pits. _

                “Makoto!”

                Makoto blinked and jerked, forcing himself to look around. Sousuke was looking at him with panic filled eyes.

                “Makoto, you have to stay here,” he said, voice weak but loud enough for the brunet to hear him. “You have to, or she’ll kill you.”

                “I’m not already dead?” Makoto asked, blinking slowly at his companion. Sousuke shook his head as much as the heretic’s fork allowed.

                “No. No you’re not dead. You’re still here with me,” he replied. “You don’t want to leave Haru, do you?”

                “He’s fine on his own.”

                “The others aren’t though. Rin. Gou,” Sousuke said in a pained voice.

                Makoto focused his eyes on the other alpha. Pain thrummed through his body with each second and he was becoming more and more acutely aware of it. But he was also aware that his vision was clearing, that he could see Sousuke more clearly.

                Of course they couldn’t just leave the others. He shook himself vigorously and groaned in the resulting pain, but he was at least more conscious now.

                “We need to escape,” Sousuke said. “We need to get out!”

                “Sousuke,” Makoto said.

                “Yeah?” the alpha replied.

                “Promise me something,” Makoto murmured, meeting that teal gaze.

                “What?”

                “Promise me that if something happens to me, that you’ll protect Haru,” the brunet alpha said and his voice left no room to doubt what he said. Sousuke mouthed, apparently numb.

                “I thought you loved him,” Sousuke finally said.

                “I do,” Makoto answered. “But not…I don’t think…like you do.”

                “What are you talking about?” Sousuke asked. Makoto thought he could hear him swallow and whimper at the sharp instrument at his throat.

                “Have you slept with him yet?” There was no malic in Makoto’s words. No anger or jealousy. A statement of pure curiosity.

                “Not…not really?” Sousuke said in a weak voice.

                “Hah not really,” Makoto chuckled. “He’s a good omega, so good…”

                “Makoto what is wrong with you?”

                 The brunet alpha blinked at him slowly, trying to focus on Sousuke’s face and Sousuke’s face alone. His body stung. The cuts on his chest had stopped oozing blood but every time he shifted he could feel them pull. And his thighs, sprinkled with oil burns… burns hurt worse than cuts they always hurt worse than cuts.

                “Promise me,” Makoto demanded.

                “I…I promise,” Sousuke said, startled. He swallowed again and Makoto followed a trickle of blood dribble down the heretic’s fork from the alpha’s jaw, mixing with the blood on his chest.

                Makoto sighed, content at the moment.

                “Where do you think the others are? Do you think they’re alright?” Sousuke asked him.

                “Don’t know,” the brunet murmured. He was losing consciousness and he couldn’t stop it. “Need…to sleep…”

                “Makoto!”

                His head lulled onto his chest as he passed out, vision going back, leaving Sousuke alone.

 

-

 

                Rin could tell that Haru had checked out completely. Like that time, back in the caverns, where he had been sitting stock-still, eyes glazed and unblinking. He realized it was a coping mechanism. Of course it was. But now Rin was alone. Alone with Haru, who was slumped, unmoving, beside him. If he glanced at him – he didn’t want to look at him – he was sure he would see glassy eyes and low, shallow breaths.

                Haru had _left_ him. Had left him alone here and part of him felt that he couldn’t forgive him, if they got out of here. He had simply abandoned Rin here. To deal with whatever was to come. Whatever was in store for them. He gritted his teeth angrily and tried to nudge Haru. It did nothing to rouse the omega.

                “He’s smart, that one,” a voice said and Rin looked around. The Chief had reentered, finally. It had been hours, it had had to be. “But you…I don’t know how smart you are.” He sat down in front of Rin, wiping his hands on a cloth. The not-beta looked at them and blanched – the Chief’s hands were stained red. Blood?

                He chuckled darkly. “Oh don’t worry,” he said, glancing at his hands as well. “This is animal. Your friends are still alive.” Rin let out a soft sigh, head spinning in terror and worry.

                “My sister. Where is my sister?” Rin demanded. He nudged Haru again.

                “Would you like me to tell you exactly what will happen to her?” the Chief said, tossing the blood stained cloth to the side. Rin didn’t know. He really didn’t know but he had the feeling that the Chief would tell him anyway.

                “Female alphas are different, you know this right? Of course, my daughter is an alpha and she is not the only one in our caravan, but your sister. Mm, your sister. Such a small, dainty alpha,” the Chief said.

                The redhead swallowed hard against the lump in his throat.

                “Female alpha cunts are different. Tighter. Less accommodating for something, anything, to be forced inside,” the man explained. “That’s why it’s so much fun to fuck them.”

                “N-no,” Rin whimpered out. He felt cold, numb. His sister, his baby sister.

                “The chances of them getting with child are low,” the Chief continued. “She won’t be alive long enough for that though of course. My people will take turns with her until she is covered in blood and seed. She will no doubt die from it. My people know just how to tear cunts and asses apart in the most painful ways.”

                Tears had started to run down Rin’s cheeks. No, he hadn’t wanted to hear that. It was so vulgar, so horrible, so graphic and violent that he felt sick or felt like he was going to pass out. Again. He couldn’t let himself pass out though. He had to figure out how to escape.

                “Maybe I’ll make you watch,” the Chief said thoughtfully.

                Rin let out a ragged sob, shuddering violently against Haru and the ropes. This was all too much, too much. He heard the Chief laugh harshly and get to his feet but he couldn’t see anything, couldn’t see the light or the tent or the sadistic alpha who was now leaving the tent. His breath came out in choked sobs and he tasted salt as his tears fell into his open mouth and he couldn’t see anything what were they going to do what was there to do what could he do?

                It was hopeless. There was nothing he could do. His sister was going to die in the worst possible way. His best friend and Makoto were going to die slowly and painfully. And he and Haru… he and Haru were to be eaten.

                Rin couldn’t breathe.

                He couldn’t see.

                His stomach rolled and a level of helplessness he had never experienced before washed over him, crushing his body and mind and soul under it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...... gomen. So much gomen but not really


	11. Falu and Rubicund

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kou finds an ally and work to find the others in her group, without being found out first. Sousuke crosses a line.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I...AM SO SORRY. SIX MONTHS. SIX. FUCKING. MONTHS. I am so sorry. I didn't actually know that it had been that long. I had this chapter half written for probably half of that time, too. A lot has happened since I last updated this fic, so I'll use that as an excuse. I hope you all forgive me for that. Especially with how I ended that last chapter. 
> 
> So here is chapter 11. I hope you like it. I hope it isn't rushed. I hope you like girl-power-proactive-Gou. It is moving along. OKAY BYE ENJOY.

Chapter 11

 

                _This was quite possibly the most hopeless situation he had ever been in_ , Kisumi thought as he dragged his feet through the sand, willing himself to keep walking, just keep walking, until he came across somewhere safe to rest.

                He hadn’t found them yet. Hadn’t found their cavern dwelling, hadn’t found any trace of those he was searching for. He squinted through the blinding sun, at the desolate landscape. He couldn’t tell if he liked it better than the Citadel or not. At least in the Citadel, he had water and food. But there was a strange beauty about the sand and the rocks, the way the air shimmered in the heat, and how terribly clear the sky was out here. He had never known the sky to be so clear. Not that he was surprised – the smog from the factories always choked the air back in the Citadel. Stars were visible, but not many, and not bright.

                But here… Stars were beautiful things and he had found himself staring at them while he walked during the night, eyes wide at the beauty. When he looked at the stars, he could forget his exhaustion and hunger and thirst.

                But it was because of this that Kisumi had wandered off his intended path. It had been dark and the sky had been clear, but no moon helped light his way. Before he knew it, the pink-haired beta looked around, finally looking down from the sky, and found that he no longer was following the cliffs. That the cliffs were far away and indeed he couldn’t even see them, it was much too dark.

                Kisumi sat down in the sand when he realized this, trying to keep his panic at bay. How was he supposed to get out of this situation? How was he supposed to find his way to (relative) safety? He didn’t know how big the world was but so far it was very.

 

-

 

                Rin felt sick. Haru had checked out a while ago, eyes half closed and glazed, his limp form giving the redhead no comfort in their terrible situation. So far they had been left alone, not knowing what was happening with anyone else. Not knowing if his little sister, his baby sister, was still okay, still alive. If his best friend was alive. If Makoto was alive.

                Makoto…Rin’s heart hurt thinking about the brunet alpha. If things had been different, maybe they could have… but it wasn’t different and he was getting to the point where his hope was nearly gone, so what was the point in daydreaming of a life he never could have? There was no point.

 

-

 

                Until now, Kou had been left alone. Tied tightly by ropes on a pile of rugs, her relative comfort could mean nothing good. She didn’t know where the others were, or how they were. Her memory was fuzzy. She could remember being with the others, feeling groggy and dizzy. And then that beta, Rei, had come in. And then Kamuko. And then everything turned to black.

                She had been conscious for a while now though. No one else was in the tent with her; she was alone in her panic. She was trying her best to stay calm, of course, but she really didn’t know what to do in the situation she had ended up in. What could she do, even? She was small and slight and not athletic in the least. The ropes binding her were tight and she didn’t know how to fight, because she would no doubt have to fight her way out of this place. Especially to find the others.

                Where were they? Her brother? Sousuke? Haru and Makoto, the friends, the _family_ they had made since their nightmarish journey into this world had begun? It felt so terribly hopeless. And yet. And yet… She couldn’t simply wait here to be rescued by her brother or the others.

                She _was_ an alpha, after all. This had to mean something, in the grand scheme of things. To their situation. To their possible escape.

                But what could she do when she was all alone?

                Kou started to wriggle, fighting against the ropes that bound her. They bit into her skin as she wiggled, rolling to her other side. It was tight. But she was small. She was flexible. And maybe if she could get just one hand loose she could figure out how to get out. This would be the first step.

                The young woman let out a grunt as she got herself onto her stomach, twisting her hands and wrists, testing. There had to be a way to get out! There _had_ to be. She didn’t want to the think of the otherwise.

                “What are you doing, girl-alpha?”

                Kou froze and shifted to her side, looking over her shoulder as best she could at the new arrival. Someone she didn’t know. Not Kamuko or the Chief, which she was glad for (although maybe that meant they were with the others). He was a beta by the look of it, rough and scarred, broad. Strong enough to hold her down or pick her up and throw her meters. She didn’t want to find out.

                “ _I said_ , what are you doing?” he growled, the smirk on his face fading from his face at her stubborn glare.

                “Getting out of here,” she huffed, and proceeded to start wiggling again. It felt like the ropes on her hands were loosening, at least a little.

                “Oh no you don’t,” he snarled and stepped forward. He grabbed her hair and forced her face into the furs, holding her down, as he straddled her hips.

                Kou gasped and whimpered as his weight pressed down onto her and she stopped struggling. Instead trying to breathe. The beta leaned down, fingers tightening in her hair and dragging against her scalp. “Maybe I’ll go tell the Chief. Maybe I’ll tell him I stopped you from escaping. And I’ll be the first one to feel you, to taste you,” he growled in her ear. Kou shivered, closing her eyes tightly.

                He sat back onto her hips and dragged her head up, lifting her upper body off the ground. She let out a soft cry of pain, eyes watering at the feeling of being dragged by her hair. Oh god it hurt, it hurt so much. Her hipbones were digging down, and even through the layers of rugs she could feel the hardness of the packed ground. She felt her bones roll against them as the beta shifted his weight on top of her.

                “Mm, female alphas smell so good,” the beta growled, pressing his nose against her neck. He licked a long strip against her skin, across her glands, causing her to shudder and twitch. “Little bitch female alphas feel good, too.” He reached around and grabbed her breast roughly through her clothes, groaning as he did so.

                “S-stop!” Kou cried out, tears now rolling down her cheeks as he manhandled her. “D-don’t touch me!”

                She didn’t think he would stop. She figured he would keep going as far as he dared, without his chief’s permission. She didn’t expect his whole body to freeze, his hand on her breast to slacken, and the fingers in her hair to loosen.

                “W-what the hell,” he choked out. Just as startled as she was.

                “Get off me!” she said, more force behind her words now, heaving for breath, tears still rolling down her cheeks. “Stop!”

                The beta’s hands let go and he practically fell off her onto the ground beside the bound alpha. Kou stared at him, eyes wide, tears clinging to her eyelashes as he struggled with himself. What was wrong with him? What was he doing? He seemed to be fighting against an invisible force.

                “What…alpha…” he choked out.

                And her eyes widened and her mouth fell open. She had used her Voice without even realizing it. Used it, and it had worked against this beta who was so many times her size. She swallowed hard. “Un…untie me,” she said and although she quivered, she said it firm and unyielding. Slowly, slowly, the beta moved, getting to his knees. He looked like he was struggling, fighting.

                “How dare—”

                “Shut up,” Kou said, panting. For some reason, this was taking a lot of energy out of her. Or maybe that was just from fighting against the ropes. The beta fell silent, like he had swallowed his tongue. Drew out a knife and cut the ropes binding her with trembling hands.

                She scrambled up, rubbing her wrists. It looked like he was breaking away from her commands, slowing dragging himself to his feet, staring with murder in his eyes at the girl.

                “Yield,” she hissed. “On your knees!” She remembered the way her voice sounded when Sousuke and Makoto had been fighting. It was this. This was the alpha power. And it worked on this beta. And maybe it would work on others. Could this be the way out?

                He crumpled, falling hard onto his knees before her. He stared up at her, throat bared, panting hard with exertion, still trying to fight it.

                “Where…where is my brother?” Kou asked. He didn’t answer, so she steeled herself and repeated the question with more force this time.

                “I-in a center t-tent. He and that omega bitch w-will be the main course!” he spat out. Kou’s eyes widened and she covered her mouth with her hands. _Main course?!_ “He’s a delicacy, y-you know that? Not beta, not omega. S-sweetest flesh in the world. O-or so I’m told, I’ve never been privileged enough to have a slice. I bet they’ve already started!”

                She felt sick. She felt like she was going to throw up. But no. No, she couldn’t. She couldn’t be weak now. She had to save them. Had to save them all.

 

-

 

                The heretic’s fork had been removed, but not before piercing the soft flesh of Sousuke’s lower jaw. It hadn’t gone all the way through. Thank the gods. But it was bleeding as he panted, resting his head against the post he was bound to.

                Makoto was unconscious against the post next to Sousuke. He couldn’t wake him up, but he wasn’t completely surprised. Kamuko had come back several times and although it obviously hurt, hurt so bad, Makoto hadn’t screamed, hadn’t cried out. He had nearly bitten through his lip, blood dribbling down from where he clenched down to stop making a noise.

                Although Kamuko had stuck to their deal so far, it was obvious she was running out of patience. She hadn’t expected Makoto to be so hard to crack. The brunet alpha had passed out during the last visit from the sadistic she-alpha and he hadn’t woken up. It was getting to the point where Sousuke was wondering if he had died. He raised his head and stared at the other.

                Relief flowed through him as he saw that Makoto’s chest, although covered in cuts and burns, was rising and falling still as he breathed. It was shallow, fast. He needed help, now. There was already a good pool of blood under him, staining his skin.

                “Makoto,” Sousuke called, voice hoarse. “Makoto, can you hear me?”

                The alpha didn’t react, still hanging limp from where he was tied.

 

-

 

                The camp was a maze, that was for sure. Kou wasn’t sure exactly how to find the center tent. ‘Center tent’ wasn’t as specific as she had hoped, because once she got into the body of camp, she lost all sense of direction. It didn’t help that half her attention and energy was being used to control the beta who had been watching her.

                Eventually she had had enough, couldn’t waste her strength on this when there were bigger matters at hand, and she grabbed a large rock and knocked him out. Kou was surprised to find that it was harder to do so than expected. It had taken several solid hits before he went down and didn’t get up, head bleeding.

                She pressed herself against the side of the tent as she heard someone approaching, obviously drawn to the sound of grunting and the beta falling to the ground. Kou covered her mouth to stop herself from whimpering. She may have gotten away from that beta, she may have used her Voice, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t completely terrified. Feeling like she might faint any second.

                But she couldn’t. Couldn’t faint or give up or hide. Kou had to save them. Her family.

                So Kou held her breath as someone came slowly around the corner and saw the collapsed beta. They were moving tentatively as if they too were scared to be found. But it didn’t seem like one of her companions, not in stature or scent. And then they came closer and the light of a nearby torch flashed across their glasses, illuminating the ruby frames and dancing off those blue locks.

                It was the beta, Rei.

                Rei crouched down beside the beta and checked his pulse. He was quiet for a long moment then dropped his hand and looked around, eyes wide, shoulders tense. There was no way she could hide without being seen, so she simply stayed still. Hoping his gaze would go passed her.

                Their eyes met. Rei gasped before clapping his hands across his mouth. Kou couldn’t move now, even though she had been spotted. She was frozen. But, it seemed, so was Rei.

                His gaze flickered to the beta on the ground then back to Kou’s face. He did it once more before Kou realized he was actually asking a question. She nodded and slowly released some tension from her body.

                Rei crept to her and crouched down beside her. “How did you get out?” he whispered, eyes wide.

                “Alpha,” Kou replied, although she still couldn’t quite believe that it had worked. Rei stared at her. Then shook his head and looked around. Panicking. Like her, but Kou realized that now was a time she couldn’t show her panic, her emotions. And she was no longer alone. “…Do you want to get out of here?”

                “Yes,” Rei replied immediately. “But how?”

                “Haru and my brother are in the center tent,” Kou said. Rei nodded. “Do you know where Makoto and Sousuke are?” Rei nodded again, and Kou took a deep breath. “Well, we… find them. And leave before anyone realizes.”

                “This plan has a very low percent of success,” he mumbled. Kou glared at him and he looked away. “But…I g-guess it’s better than nothing. How do we get through camp without being seen though?”

                Kou was quiet for a long time. It was dark. That helped, but only so much. She was sure there would be guards throughout the camp, especially around the tents where her family was. “You know your way around the camp, don’t you?”

                Rei nodded, pushing his glasses back into place. Simply as something to do with his hands it seemed.

                “We have to try,” she said and stood up. Rei did the same then went back to the unconscious beta on the ground and rifled through his pockets. Grabbing the knives that he had. He handed one to Kou, who swallowed and took it with a nod. Now was not the time to get squeamish or passive. Drastic times called for drastic measures, after all.

                Kou followed Rei as they slowly made their way through the tents.

                “Who should we try to find first?” Rei whispered to her.

                “Whoever we come across first,” Kou said firmly. She couldn’t choose between who was more important, so whoever they came across first was the first they would find. It seemed that Rei had an idea where to start though which Kou was completely fine with because she knew she would get hopelessly lost in the camp.

                Several times they nearly walked into people but Rei pulled them back quickly right before a guard or group rounded the corner. She was glad that she had found Rei. That Rei wanted out and was willing to help her and the others. It raised their chances at least slightly and right now she would take slightly.

                The two stopped walking and crouched down near the back of a tent. Rei motioned for her to listen with him and they pressed their ears to the canvas. Kou suppressed a shudder as she felt the stretched hide – human – against her skin but pushed it away.

                “—He is a stubborn one isn’t he, baby?” Kamuko’s voice reached Kou’s ears and she stiffened, sending a glance to Rei. “A hard egg to crack. It is not fun anymore.”

                “Fuck you.” That was Sousuke and although his voice was hoarse it was strong and determined.

                “You are stubborn too,” the she-alpha hummed. The sound of rustling fabric reached them. It sounded like Kamuko was sitting down. “I might have to start to play with you.”

                Silence stretched inside the tent and Kou and Rei pressed their ears a little harder against the canvas.

                “Well, if he is still not awake by the time I get back, I might just have to start playing with you,” Kamuko stated. Footsteps could be heard and the sound of the flap being pushed aside. She had left the tent.

                “Fuck,” Sousuke whispered, just loud enough for Kou could hear. “Makoto, Makoto please!”

                “We have to go now,” Rei hissed to Kou. “We don’t know when she’ll come back!”

                Kou nodded and looked around. She could hear several people speaking at the mouth of the tent, then looked at her knife. Steeling herself, she pressed the sharp blade against canvas and pushed in.

                It cut through the skin easily and she dragged it down. It was so loud in her ears, but she thought those at the mouth of the tent were talking too loudly to hear it. Rei was watching, eyes wide. It seemed like it took her forever to cut a slit large enough for them to fit through, every inch just waiting for a guard to come around the tent. But that didn’t happen and she slowly pushed the flap open and squeezed through.

                Sousuke had turned to face the sound. His mouth opened wide, a look of shock and elation filling his face and _he was going to say something and give them away!_ Kou jumped forward and covered his mouth with her hands, eyes wide with panic. The other alpha grunted, swallowed, then nodded, realizing what he had almost done. She dropped her hand as Rei joined her in the tent.

                “H-how?” Sousuke whispered as Kou started to cut at his ropes.

                “R-remember, in the cave?” she asked him. “W-when you and Makoto got into a fight…?”

                Sousuke nodded slowly, understanding flooding into his face. “W-wow,” he breathed. The ropes fell away and he yanked himself away from the post. He was bleeding, but not nearly as badly as Makoto. The brunet alpha was still unconscious. Kou wrapped an arm around Sousuke, helping him to his feet.

                Rei had gone to the brunet, checking if he was alive.

                “He’s still breathing,” he whispered, glancing at the two alphas who had stepped towards them. “W-we need to get him out. I need to look at his…his… his injuries!” Kou nodded and with Sousuke’s help, they untied the alpha. Makoto sagged, almost collapsing onto the ground if Rei hadn’t stopped him. The beta carefully wrapped the male in some of the rags of his old cloak to give him some cover.

                “He h-hasn’t responded to anything in a while,” Sousuke replied, eyes on the mouth of the tent and Kou was thankful for that, because she was very absorbed in helping her friends. Kou looked back at Makoto.

                “We have to get out of here,” Rei hissed. He slid one of Makoto’s arms around his shoulder. Sousuke knelt down, legs stiff and sore, and took his other arm and together they lifted him up. The brunet let out a groan as he was dragged to his feet, Rei staggering under his weight.

                Kou looked at the slit she had cut into the tent and realized that they would not fit back through there. Sousuke wouldn’t fit, not with his height and bulk, and so there was no way two people would, trying to get Makoto out as well. She turned to look at the mouth of the tent.

                “No way!” Rei said to her, eyes wide behind his glasses.

                “It’s the only way!” she replied. “We have to go that way.”

                She looked at Sousuke, whose face was set into a firm, determined glare. Rei cowered a little under her gaze and nodded.

                “How?” the blue-haired beta asked. They could still hear the guards talking and when Kou tuned into their conversation her stomach flipped – they were talking about how the feast was going to start soon.

                “W-we…we take them out,” Kou said, determined even though her voice trembled. She glanced again at Sousuke, who nodded in response. The two men shifted Makoto between them, causing the alpha to groan again and Kou saw his eyes flicker. She stepped closer to him, peering into his face. “Makoto?”

                They were all quiet for a long moment as Makoto struggled to lift his head and open his eyes. He finally did so and stared down at the female alpha in front of him. His eyes were dull, pupils dilated so far that Kou could barely see any of the vibrant green usually present. It made Kou scared, because there wasn’t much life in those usually brilliant orbs.

                “R-Rin?” Makoto breathed out before starting to cough. His breath caught in his throat as he wheezed.

                “Shh,” Kou whispered, eyes widening in panic. It was concerning that he didn’t recognize her. Maybe all he saw was her hair. Or maybe he was simply thinking about her brother. But he was being much too loud, and even if it sounded like raving it would attract the attention of the guards.           

                “How are you here?” Makoto asked, obviously fighting to focus on Kou’s face.

                “Makoto, shh, you have to be quiet!” Rei whispered, shifting how he was holding the alpha.

                “Did you hear that?”

                The group inside the tent froze as the guard’s conversation stopped. Makoto sagged against the two, losing consciousness again and Sousuke groaned at the added strain to his shoulder.

                “What are you two doing in there?” the other guard asked through the tent entrance. “You stay here. I’m going to check on them.”

                The three of them exchanged terrified glances. What were they going to do? What _could_ they do? They shuffled backwards as the flap was pushed aside and one of the guards came in. There was a moment where the guard just stood in the mouth of the tent, eyes wide, dumbstruck to see double the people there should be in the space. He opened his mouth to shout to the other guard and Kou knew they needed to do something. _But what? What could they do? What could they do?!_

                And then she was being pushed aside, backwards towards Makoto and Rei, and Sousuke had grabbed the knife hanging limply in her hand – stepping close – _lunging_ – and his face was contorted with rage – and the sound – of flesh – and – metal and Kou fell back against Makoto, trying to hold him up with Rei as

                - blood spilled over Sousuke’s hands – _splashing_ and _gushing_ – onto the ground and over Sousuke and the alpha

                - was pulling the long blade from where it was – _deep_ – in the man’s head thrust up through his jaw – _it sounded so hard to yank out_  - and the man fell to the ground with a heavy thud. Kou’s eyes went to Sousuke.

                The alpha was panting hard, the knife clenched in his hand, staring down at the man at his feet, blood still pouring out from the gash in his neck. Kou felt sick. The young man she knew almost as well as her own brother had just brutally stabbed someone. Right in front of her. And now he was covered in blood and his chest was heaving and the look in his eyes scared her.

                Makoto was heavy on her shoulder; she could barely hold him up even with Rei holding some of his weight as well. But Sousuke was turning as the flap opened again. The other guard slipped in his companion’s blood as he came in to see what had happened and fell forward. Right into the blood-covered alpha. He let out a startled noise as he tried to fight against Sousuke’s tight grip, but the alpha was already plunging the knife into the male’s back, over and over and over again, until the man was no longer moving, no longer breathing, and collapsed atop his fellow.

                Kou’s heart was beating hard in her chest as she watched her friend stare down at what he had just done. She wanted to say something. Wanted to bring Sousuke back to her, to them, but her voice didn’t seem to be working.

                “P-please, help Kou,” Rei said, voice weak and shaking. Kou let out a breath. “W-we can’t hold him up!”

                It seemed to take Sousuke several moments to work through what the beta had said to him but when he did, he moved forward and traded places with Kou. The young woman sighed softly, no longer having to hold up the larger alpha. She was shaken from the act of violence that had just happened before them. But part of her was glad. She hadn’t had to do it.

                She knelt down swiftly and grabbed several of their weapons, trying to avoid stepping in the pools of blood gathered under the bodies. She looked at the group of males. Rei’s eyes were fixed on the dead bodies before them, and she could see him shaking. Then she looked at Sousuke. There was something about his eyes that unnerved her. But they would just deal with that later. After they had found Rin and Haru and they had escaped the camp.

                Sousuke had done what had had to be done. She just hoped that…that he wouldn’t be broken by it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of things are gonna happen next chapter(s). So either there might be two shorter chapters (in two parts) OR a loooooong chapter.
> 
> ja mata bbies


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